The Right Kind of Wrong
by cyanCaddy
Summary: After meeting Claire one month before his mission in Edonia, Piers can't get his Captain's sister out of his head.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:** This is the first story I ever decided to publish. After reading that mail that Piers send to Claire I kind of started to ship them and wanted to write a story about them ever since. My friend Joanna and I are currently busy with an RPG that kind of features PiersxClaire as well, we are not really sure where we are going with it but it's so. much. fun. :) I am usually an absolute Cleon fangirl, but since Ada always shows up it is really painful to ship them.

It might be important to know that I changed some things in this story. I changed the timeline a little and I made them all a little younger. Claire is supposed to be 26 and Chris 32. It's not that I would mind Piers being younger than Claire but I didn't want to focus on their age difference. It is just supposed to be a cute little story. Neil is still alive so Claire's abduction to the island together with Moira didn't happen (yet). Maybe I will include it later. I'm not sure.

I hope you enjoy the story, I appreciate any review or comment. Don't hesitate to message me either, I love nothing more than discussing Resident Evil. :)

Caddy

* * *

 **One month before Edonia**

 _Shitshitshit_

Piers hurried down the hallway in the BSAA headquarter, heading straight to the conference room where his team mates were started the daily briefing about 15 minutes ago, but today the briefing was supposed to be different. Piers was never late. Usually. He didn't oversleep, but he was reading the files his Captain handed him before the weekend. Piers had heard of the BSAA before he met Chris Redfield, but he didn't think he'd actually work for them one day.

Chris complimented Piers on his skills when they met at a shooting range, two days after he asked Piers to join his team. Probably after he did some research on the young soldier. Despite being only 26 years old, his résumé was really impressive. He graduated at top of his class from one of the best military academies of the country and joined the US Army Special Forces right away. Piers had loved his occupation there but he wanted a greater calling to make use of his skills and the BSAA seemed just right to achieve this goal. He didn't think twice.

He took a deep breath when he finally arrived at the door, he was just about to knock when the door swung open and a woman Piers had never seen before stepped out of the room. She greeted him with a warm soft smile and held the door open for him.  
"I will be right back.", she said to the people inside and then walked down the direction Piers just came from. He shrugged and entered the conference room where his team mates Carl, Ben, Finn and Andy were sitting at a table. He was relieved to see that his Captain didn't arrive yet either.

"Sorry guys, got bound up with my homework and didn't keep track of the time.", he sat down next to Andy Walker, the oldest of the group.  
"That's fine, kid. Didn't miss anything.", he said in his deep southern accent.  
"Except for _her_.", Finn added with a sly smile and looked to the door. "That's a sight I could get used to.", he laughed and took a sip from his coffee.

"Be careful. She's the Captains sister after all. He's gonna kick your ass if you try something stupid.", Andy reminded him in a dry tone.  
"Wait, what?", Piers tried to put the pieces together. "That's her?", he pointed to the door and tried not to sound too surprised. When Chris announced that his sister will visit their team to give a presentation, he didn't exactly expect that she was in similar shape like her brother, but still he didn't expect her to be this...attractive.

"Yepp, we were as surprised as you are when we first saw her. Apparently not everyone is a body builder in the Redfield family.", all of them laughed but got quiet the moment the door opened again. Chris entered with a folder under his arm and a coffee in his hands and didn't seem to notice the silence he had created. Or maybe he just didn't care.

"Good morning guys. Glad you're all here, traffic was a bitch today.", he rolled his eyes and put his stuff on the table. "I met Claire down the hallway, heard she already said hi. She's waiting for her boss to show up.", he used the remote to start the projector and then lowered the blinds. "He's a slime ball, but be nice to him. I try to be.", he sat down at the table with the others and drank from his cup.

"Hey Cap, is your sister single?", Finn asked without hesitation and put on his smile once again. Chris raised his eyebrows put down his coffee. "Why don't you ask her yourself, Rookie?", he replied and Piers noticed some amusement in his voice. "Yeah, sure.", Finn leaned back in his chair and started playing with the pen that was laying on the table in front of him and actually seemed a little disappointed. Since Chris was in the room with them now, they didn't continue the discussion about the looks of his sister.

It took another five minutes until Claire entered the room again, together with a well dressed man who was, by the looks of it, in his thirties. "Good morning, sorry for the delay. Traffic.", he rolled his eyes and put his laptop on the table. "Let me introduce myself before we start. My name is Neil Fisher, I am head of the public relations department at TerraSave.", he connected his laptop to the projector.  
"I see a new face in the crowd, so I'm gonna introduce myself aagain.", Claire started and looked at Piers, once again she gave him this soft and warm smile. He looked away when his eyes met hers and he didn't even know why he did so.

"I'm Claire. Neil and I are here today to talk about a new kind of BOW that surfaced in Edonia, eastern Europe. Chris probably told you enough about it already. As you know a pretty sinister civil war is going on over there and now they decided to add bio organic weapons to the party. TerraSave's got an informant and we want to share our information with the BSAA, so you guys are prepared for your mission.", everyone nodded and shifted their attention to the projection on the wall. All except for Piers.

He eyed Claire for a few more moments. She was wearing a white blouse that flattered her figure, her reddish hair was up in a ponytail, but a few loose strands were framing her face. On her dark blue jeans he spotted a visitor's pass and he found himself wondering if she was visiting the BSAA on a regular basis. Probably so...Piers was pulled out of his thoughts when he noticed in the corner of his eye that his Captain was looking at him, so he lifted his eyes up to the presentation on the wall above Claire and Neil. They started off with a couple gruesome pictures of Edonia. After a quick recap of the current events a blurry picture of a big ugly creature appeared on the wall.  
 _What the hell?_

Something Piers had never seen before caught everyone's attention. The creature was humanoid, though he wasn't able to tell if this thing used to be a man or a woman. It's mouth was a big black hole, enormous teeth stuck out of it. He looked over to Chris, but he didn't seem as shocked as Piers had expected.  
 _He's probably seen worse._

"What do we know about this thing?", the Captain asked calmly. "Not much, but apparently they are working on a new modification of the virus. That's how they created this monster.", Claire showed some more pictures of Edonia. When he looked over to Finn he noticed that all the color had vanished from his face, he was petrified with horror. After and he has never been on a real mission before. Chris got up from his chair and went to stand next to his sister.

"The BSAA's gonna joining the fight next month. We will fly over there and try to put an end to this goddamn war before the BOWs are activated...if they aren't already.", everyone nodded, except for Finn. "We will intensify our training from today on. We can't be prepared for what they gonna throw at us, still I want everyone to be on their toes.", they discussed for two hours what is going to happen once they set foot to Edonia. Once again Piers notices how impressed he was by the man he called his Captain. He had this position for a reason, Chris was able to keep a clear head in any heated situation.

The briefing ended with Neil handing out his business cards, when he went back to Claire, Piers noticed how he gently laid his hand on her shoulder and said something to her out of earshot. Whatever it was, it made her smile in the sweetest way. And now Piers started to understand why Chris doesn't like Neil and he didn't blame him. "We gonna talk to the other teams of your unit for the rest of the day. If you have any question just come and see us again or call us anytime.", Neil finished and walked towards the door. Before she followed him, Claire wrote her e-mail address on the flip chart in the corner of the room. "Or just shoot me a mail. I'll be happy to help wherever I can.", everyone used the backside of Neil's business card to write down her address. "It would help me a lot if you'd have a coffee with me after work.", Finn said while writing without even looking at Claire. Piers considered this comment inappropriate but was glad to see that he was back on track after the shock.

"Sorry Bro, she's out of your league.", Carl threw in a comment before Claire could answer, she pretended like she didn't hear him when she replied. "I will take you up on that offer when you are back from Edonia.", she winked at Finn and walked out of the room.  
"She didn't tell you, but you just got turned now.", Chris said and he wasn't even trying to hide the amusement in his voice. "It was worth a try.", Finn grinned and got up from his seat.

"I'm not shitting you, this freaking BOW is terrifying, how are we supposed to kill it?", he asked and moving the subject away from Claire Redfield. "So far we managed to kill everything. This thing won't be any different. We just need to be prepared. Let's get down to business. Take ten and then we start our training for today."

* * *

"You are Piers, right?", he was caught off guard when a soft voice behind him pulled him out of his thoughts. It was Claire, she was standing behind him in line for lunch. "That's right.", he replied with a smile. "Can I help you?", he noticed that Claire was looking around like she was searching someone or something. "No no, I'm fine. I just wanna use the chance to talk to everyone in Chris' team. He talks so much about you guys, so I am glad I finally get to meet you in person.", Piers was flattered, he didn't expect that Chris was talking about work that much, since he doesn't speak about his private life either.

"That's really nice, I wish the occasion for your visit today would have been a happy one. Not about the shit that's going on in Edonia.", Claire was still looking around but now she apparently found what she was looking for - her brother. He was already sitting with the other members of the team. "Yeah, I agree with you there. But well, that's part of the job.", since Claire introduced herself that morning, he was wondering what made her choose this kind of occupation. "How did you decide to work for Terra Save? It's a pretty grim job, I assume.", Claire hesitated for a moment and Piers notices how she was looking for words. Wrong question.

"Let's say Chris and I have some kind of history with BOWs. I will tell you some other time. It's a longer story.", on the first day of his job, Piers learned the truth about the Raccoon City incident. There has never been a nuclear catastrophe. A missile destroyed the entire city to cover up the fact it was flooded by monsters and walking dead. He wondered what happened to Claire and how she got in contact with BOWs, but he understood it was a private matter and none of his business.

"Chris speaks highly of you, I'm glad he has people in his team he can count has been hard for him the past couple years but he's getting better every day.", and again...she smiled at him in a way that turned his knees into jelly. Piers was an experienced soldier who could analyze a dangerous situation and make important decisions within seconds. But women were a whole different story. It's not like he was completely inexperienced, but so far his main priority in life was his education and now his job.

Apart from a couple high school girlfriends he dated like ten years ago, he never introduced a woman to his parents. "I'm glad to hear that, he's a great Captain. Best I ever had.", after they got their food, they sat down with the other guys from the team and Claire used the whole hour to have a little chat with all of them. Piers could tell they were all smitten and he couldn't blame them.

* * *

The first days of mission preparations were always the worst, because Chris tended to intensify their training to a maximum. But Piers liked it. He liked to be challenged. After his first BSAA mission Chris made him second in command. His parents couldn't have been more proud, though his mother was always worried when he had to leave the country.

Even if he enjoyed the training and the company of his comrades, he was looking forward to the weekend. It was time to get some rest. When Piers got home, it was already dark outside and since he didn't feel like going out again, he just ordered Chinese food online and drank two beers while watching some sports. He didn't like to admit it, but since Claire visited their unit three days ago he has been thinking about sending her an e-mail, though he wasn't really sure what to tell her.

After he opened his third beer, he sat down on the couch with his laptop and started typing...it took him one hour to write something he didn't completely hate, but when he was done, he didn't send it, he just closed the laptop and went to bed.

It took him two more days until he got the courage to finish the mail and after reading it for the 100th time, he finally send it.  
 _What is wrong with you Nivans?  
_ The worst that could happen is that she won't reply...

 _Dear Claire,_

 _On behalf of our unit, I just wanted to say it was real nice to get to see you the other day. Thank you for taking the time to talk with everyone. The guys really appreciated it._

 _I know you were surprised by the men's reaction upon first seeing you. Let me explain. When we heard that Terra Save would be arriving on location, well, the men knew that you'd be coming and so they got a bit excited over the idea. They'd only heard stories about you, and since you're the Captain's sister, well...let's just say they were expecting someone more along the lines of his build. I tried to tell them otherwise, but their imaginations got the best of them._

 _So then when you arrived...well, aside from not being what they expected, we don't get to interact with a lot of pretty women in our line of work, so that's why they had the reaction that they did. Then they had to remember that you're the Captain's sister, and it made them all awkward... I'm sorry about that, ma'am._

 _You probably saw it for yourself, but we all have a lot of admiration and respect for the captain. In addition to being a very capable leader, he treats us like family. He's an inspiration to us all._

 _Speaking for the men, we're all looking forward to the chance to work with you again. Our paths may not cross often, and I know you're busy, but it'd be nice to talk every now and then, even through email. Just between you and me, if you have any pictures of the Captain when he was younger, I'd sure love to see them! I hear he was very different back then, but he won't show us anything..._

 _There's a lot more I'd like to say, but it's time to get ready for our next posting. These missions aren't easy, but it's nice to know we've got allies such as your organization backing us up. Keep fighting the good fight._

 _1LT Piers Nivans_  
 _BSAA North American Branch_


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's note:** First of all: Thank you so much for the kind reviews I got so far for the first chapter, I didn't expect any at all, so this was definitely a nice surprise. And yay no flame!  
I'm sorry it took so long for me to continue. I had (and still have) so many ideas in my head...so it happened that I started writing and I wasn't happy at all, so I just started all over. The story now takes a direction I didn't plan in the beginning but that's fine :)  
I also managed to get my Bachelor's degree in those two months, that's why I was busy and didn't find enough time to continue, but I won't stop until the story is finished.

* * *

 **3 weeks before Edonia**

Dear Piers,

I am glad to hear that our visit was useful for you and for your team.  
Though the circumstances were dark, I really enjoyed my stay at the HQ. It feels good to meet people who are still willing to fight against bioterrorism despite everything that has happened and is still happening. I actually used to come by the BSAA headquarters quite frequently on behalf of TerraSave back when both organizations were still new. Chris is amazing at his job as a Captain, I know that, but since he is also my brother, things got a little heated between us from time to time, so we decided to separate work and family. Well, at least up until last week.

I'd definitely love to show you old pictures of Chris, but only if you let me know where you got your information from.

All the best,  
Claire

* * *

Dear Claire,

thanks for your answer. I am sorry to let you know that this information is strictly confidential and I am not allowed to talk about sensitive matters like these.

I may be bribed with beer though.

* * *

Didn't know you guys were allowed to drink alcohol before missions, but well. Chris doesn't need to know. Friday 8pm at McGee's?

* * *

See you there.

* * *

Claire wasn't particularly nervous when she was waiting for Piers in front of the pub. She was just unsure how to feel about it.  
 _It's not a date, right?_  
She shrugged the thought off and looked down the street. People were returning from their shopping sprees, from work or they just tried to find a spot in one of the crowded bars in downtown Manhattan. There were three weeks left until Christmas Eve and everyone was already going crazy, but Claire never got affected by the general turbulences of pre-Christmas New York City. Especially not this year, since the only person that was left of her family would leave for Edonia on this day. She took a quick look at her watch and put her hand right back in the pocket of her jacket - she was fifteen minutes early and already freezing.

"Hey Claire.", she felt a soft touch on her shoulder and turned around. Apparently Piers arrived even earlier and had been waiting inside the pub for her. A quick smile ran over her lips, then she leaned in for a short hug.  
"Good to see you. Didn't expect you to be here yet.", she explained and followed him inside as he lead the way. "I went here right after your brother let us leave, didn't have time to stop by my place, so I figured I could just get us a table.", she felt a little guilty when she heard him talk about his working hours. She knew when Chris was getting up in the morning and that meant Piers has probably been at the HQ for more than 12 hours today.

Like the whole city, also McGee's Pub was crowded as Piers lead her to the back of this place. Claire was a regular at this place that's why she didn't worry too much about a free booth, but now that she was here, she was glad that Piers had been around early to save a spot. She sat down on the bench with her back to the wall, so she was able to see pretty much the whole pub, though for now she just focused on the man in front of her. She was surprised to see that he didn't look exhausted at all - just incredibly handsome.

She noticed that he had an already half empty beer in front of him and apparently he had followed her gaze.  
"I hope you don't mind that I started without you, I'll get you one. Guiness is fine?", she just nodded before she was able to answer anything else, he had already left the booth and headed to the bar. From the first couple minutes of their meeting she got the impression that he was pretty calm and laid back...or maybe just tired. Thanks to the Christmas business it took Piers quite a while until he walked back to the booth, she had kept herself busy deeply sunk in thoughts and looking at all the happy people around her.

"Thanks.", she said as he set down the glass in front of her and sat down again. "If I had known you had such a long day, I would have suggested to meet up on a Saturday.", Claire didn't really expect him to stay for longer than an hour tonight.  
"Wouldn't really make a difference, gotta be back at the office at 10am tomorrow. The Captain says it's necessary. Edonia is a little different from everything else we encountered before.", he replied and now Claire started to wonder if it was a good idea to meet up with him at all.  
"He's not wrong about that. I'm sorry, Piers. I don't wanna keep you from getting your time to recover. Maybe we should just -."

"No!", he interrupted her so loudly that she winced a little, his eyes widened and he continued in a calm manner. "No...don't worry. I was looking forward to tonight. It's a nice distraction and we are trained to last with nothing more than three hours of sleep every night. I will be fine.", Claire couldn't keep herself from laughing a little at his reaction. For a moment, he seemed seriously distressed that she might end this meeting right here...maybe he wasn't as laid back as he seemed after all.  
"Oh well, then...let's drink to...three hours of sleep.", she raised her glass and waited for him to do the same.

"Three hours is all I need.", he repeated and as their glasses touched. Claire took a huge sip and noticed just now how dry her throat has been this whole time.

"Irish people know two things. How to make beer and how to drink it.", she said after she set her glass down.  
"I am part Irish but you are apparently better at drinking than I am.", he looked at her glass. and raised an eyebrow. Half of her beer was gone.  
"You are part Irish?! Where is your red hair, leprechaun?", she laughed.  
"Didn't take you for someone who'd believe in stereotypes. Now I have to ask if you have Irish ancestors", Piers replied and pointed at her hair.  
"Nope, mostly Scottish.", she winked at him and took another yet shorter sip from her glass.

Claire enjoyed how effortless it was for her to keep up a conversation with Piers, after all he was pretty much a complete stranger, apart from the stories she had heard from Chris - and they were all work related.  
That was another point. As the evening went on, they managed to avoid the topic of bioterrorism almost completely. That was something she had worried beforehand. Raccoon and all the terrors that had come with it were a part of her life that she would never be able to leave behind. She wanted to leave it behind at least once in a while - and tonight was a perfect opportunity to do so.

* * *

"I was kinda worried to bother you when I sent you that first E-mail, I just had the feeling I didn't tell you everything I wanted to tell you that day at the HQ.", he confessed after he returned from the bar to get their fifth beer.  
"Oh for real? That's cute. I was really happy to hear from you. Chris has been going on and on about you the past one and a half years so it was really about time that we get to meet up in person.", she wasn't sure if it was due to the beer or if she really notices a slight blush on Piers' cheeks. Chris would probably kill her if she knew how she talked about him right now.

"Not that you think that I forgot.", she grabbed an envelope from her purse and handed it to Piers.  
"Chris Redfield - the early years.", she laughed and focused on his reaction.

"You didn't!", he exclaimed and took the photos out of the envelope where he was greeted by a youthful 22 year old Chris Redfield. "That was his first day with the STARS unit in Raccoon, he was just so damn proud that he made it.", Claire thought back to that day. After a lot of failures and disappointments, after the death of their parents and his dishonorable discharge from the airforce, he had finally found a place he belonged - together with his friend Barry Burton.

"He sure looks like it! Thank you so much, Claire. He looks so damn young.", his gaze lingered a little longer at the picture, then he looked back at Claire.  
"I see a little ressemblance to you on this picture. Didn't think that was possible when you look at him now."

He switched to the next one. It was a picture of the whole STARS Alpha team, taken only one week before the Arklay incident. Chris' hair was messy as if he had forgotten it was picture day..  
"Is that...Miss Valentine?", he asked and pointed at the short brunette woman with the beret on her head.

"Yeah, she just started working with STARS shortly before everything went to shit in Raccoon. Talking about timing, huh?", she shrugged and took a sip from her new beer.

"I had no idea that they know each other for that long, he never told us.", Piers seemed genuinely surprised and so was Claire. Why didn't he Chris about her? She knew about his relationship with Jill. For some reason they were never a couple, but at the same time they were just so much more.

"Things are a little tensed between them right now. I hope they will this figure it out sooner or later, but Chris is a freaking stubborn mule.", she rolled her eyes but couldn't help to laugh a little.

"She was the one who told me that the Captain used to be so different before.", he said and looked at each and every one of the STARS Alpha team.

"That makes sense...so why didn't you just ask her for some pictures?", she should have figured that it was Jill. She was the one who suffered the most from Chris' _changes_...

"I didn't dare to ask her, she's my superior after all...and a little intimidating. To be honest.", Claire smiled at this reply. She didn't assume that Piers was someone who was intimidated easily.

"Most of their team mates died in the Spencer mansion. Ever since then Chris is longing for revenge and justice.", she noticed how Piers' gaze got stuck at the man with the sun glasses.

"That's Albert Wesker."

"Yeah, I know. We heard quite a lot about him. Bastard.", he said, the last word barely audible.

"Agreed. Still I wanted to show you this picture. What happened in Raccoon changed Chris forever. It changed all of us.", she said and thought back to that day in September. It feels like it happened a lifetime ago.

"How did it affect you? I mean...where were you when it happened?", he asked as he switched to the next picture. It showed Chris and Claire when she visited him in Raccoon the summer before it ceased to exist. She took her time to answer.

"I was there.", she said after a couple seconds and he looked up, shock in his eyes. She knew what he was about to ask and she knew that he was probably uncomfortable to do so, so she just started to talk.

"Chris and the other STARS were missing after the mansion incident, so I decided to look for him in Raccoon. I arrived just in time to see what the virus had done to the city.", she could still remember how she felt when she entered Raccoon. How she knew something was off right after she passed the town sign.

"I survived, because Chris taught me a lot of things...also because I had help.", she thought about Leon for a split second but pushed it aside immediately. "But Raccoon is the reason why I do what I do. Why I work for TerraSave.", she explained and looked at the picture of her and Chris. Oh, how she wished she could go back to this day.

"Wow, I...I don't know what to say. I mean, I signed up for this job, I knew what would happen to me when I'd go out on missions and still I can't believe half of the shit I see when we are out there. But you, you were just a civilian...and so young!", Claire could see how he looked at her younger self on the picture.

"I'm in such a good mood right now, let's just talk about something else and save the Raccoon stories for some other time okay? I mean, of course I knew the subject would come up when I chose which pictures I'd show you, but-."

"No, no it's fine, I completely agree. It's just fascinating to learn how you came to be this incredible women.", apparently he said those words before he thought them through, because Claire could see him blush again, but so did she...  
"Thank you. I really enjoyed this evening with you.", she smiled at him softly then pointed to the pictures.  
"You can keep 'em if you like. I got copies. Just don't tell Chris or he'll kill me."

"Your secret's save with me, don't worry.", he put the pictures back in the enveloped and let it slide inside his pocket, but not before he looked one last time at the picture of her and her brother.

"I trust you with this.", she added and smiled. Then she saw _him_ entering the pub.

"Oh no...", was all she could say.

"What is it?", Piers asked and turned around when he noticed that she had focused on the small group of people who had just entered. Claire didn't answer, she just looked at the tall blonde man until his eyes met hers. He greeted her with a smile and she froze as he started to walk over to their table.

"Hello Claire. Didn't expect you here. Good to see you.", he leaned down and gave her a short kiss on the cheek, then he turned to Piers.  
"Sorry to interrupt you guys.", he offered his hand to Piers.  
"Piers Nivans.", Claire just watched the two men introduce each other.

"Leon Kennedy...wait, have we met? I think it was at the BSAA conference last year.", Leon looked at him closer and narrowed his eyes as if he tried to remember where he saw Piers before.

 _This can't be happening right now_

Claire thought and rolled her eyes without the both men noticing.

"Oh yeah right! I remember!", Piers replied and smiled at the older man.

"Still working as DSO?"

"Same old.", Leon nodded and shifted his attention back to Claire.

"Wanna join us? We have a table over there.", he pointed at some people at the end of the pub.

"Uhm, it's getting late and we were just about to leave.", she lied and looked at her still more than half full glass of beer in front of her. "Maybe some other time.", she hated the awkwardness between them. It wasn't about him, usually she just wouldn't care if she'd ran into him for some reason. But it was weird that he saw her with Piers. What would he think?

 _Do you really care?_

"Sure. Have a good one. It was nice to see you again, Claire.", he didn't seem sad or disappointed, he had probably expected her to react this way. He nodded towards Piers as a goodbye and went over to his people. Claire und Piers were silent for a moment, she just took a big sip from her beer and stared absentmindedly into space.

"Not a big fan of him, huh?", he asked to break the silence.

"He's my ex.", she answered shortly. "And he is the guy I escaped Raccoon with.", she added and looked over to Leon. He was sitting with his back turned towards the pub, so he wouldn't notice that she was watching him.

"Oh.", was all Piers managed to say to this. "One surprise after the other.", he added.

"That's a surprise I could have lived without, honestly.", she laughed dryly. "He wanted to stay friends after the break up, but I did not. We only talk if it's work related and I try to keep that to a minimum.", she didn't know why she was telling Piers all this. It was probably due to the beer that made her feel a little light headed.

"Wanna get out of here?", he asked and smiled at her in the sweetest way. She was happy he didn't ask any more questions.

"Hell yeah.", they finished their beers and after a short discussion she finally agreed that Piers would pay for all of their drinks.

She only noticed how tipsy she really was when she stepped out of the pub and felt the cold air against her skin.  
"Where do you have to go? We can share a cab if you like.", she offered and looked up and down the street for one of the yellow cars.  
"Nah, it's fine. I don't live too far away from here, I'll just walk.", Claire couldn't help but feel a small whiff of disappointment in her belly. She held out a hand to stop a cab that was just driving past them. She was successful with her first try.  
"Why is this so easy for women?", Piers asked and opened the door for her.

"Thank you for your time, Piers. I had a wonderful evening.", she said and laid one hand on his upper arm.  
"So did I. I hope we can do this again some time.", he leaned in a little and for a short moment she was sure that he'd try to kiss her. She felt his lips warm against her cheek, missing her mouth only by a few inches. She felt the temptation to move her head just a little bit, just to feel his lips on hers...but she didn't. She pulled away from him:

"We will. Definitely.", she smiled, suddenly she wasn't cold anymore.  
"See you soon.", she sat down in the cab, told the driver where to go and drifted off into her thoughts.

 _Maybe this was a date after all._

* * *

 **Author's Note** : Sorry for throwing in Leon. Like I said before, Cleon is and always will be my OTP. This story is gonna be about Claire and Piers though so Leon is just not supposed to be a possibilty :P So no worries, this is not gonna be a love triangle thing, I am not even sure if Leon's gonna show up again.

Thanks for reading. I am looking forward to some reviews 3

Caddy


	3. Bonus Chapter

**Author's note:** Hello again! After writing the next chapter I noticed that the part below didn't really fit in with the tone. At the same time I didn't want to delete it, so I decided to post it as a "bonus chapter". Not a lot happening here, just Piers and his thoughts. I hope you enjoy, the next "real" chapter will be up in a couple days :)

Thanks a lot for the reviews, they really mean a lot to me 3

Caddy

* * *

Piers only noticed how exhausted and tired he was after he had left the cold snowy air of Manhattan and entered the warm lobby of his apartment building. It was a Friday evening, so lots of well dressed people were waiting in the lobby for their cabs to arrive.

When Piers first moved in here two years ago, he noticed how the wealthy people of New York eyed him as if he was an intruder. By now he didn't care anymore.

The BSAA owned some properties around NY which they rented out to their agents for a fractional amount of the actual lease costs. Piers was lucky enough to get his hands on an apartment in the 44th floor of a skyscraper with a view over the breath taking central park.

On days he was feeling brave, he actually dared to take the stairs up to his apartment, he usually needed a shower afterwards, but after a working day of 13 hours and five beers at the bar with Claire he decided that the elevator would do just fine.

Despite his exhaustion, he knew that he wouldn't find sleep anytime soon. Claire Redfield was running circles in his brain and that would keep him from getting any rest for the next couple hours.

The week before at the BSAA HQ, Claire had been friendly and communicative, but at the same time she always seemed thoroughly professional, so when she suggested to meet up at McGee's, he was simply astounded.

It wouldn't have come as a surprise if she didn't even reply to his mail in the first place, he may have expected her to complain about his invasion of her privacy. The only thing he may have dared to hope for were pictures of the Captain attached to her response...but no. She met up with him and actually handed him hard copies of pictures with pre-BSAA Chris Redfield.

After he closed the door of his apartment behind him, he felt for the envelope in his jacket and quickly flipped through the pictures. He stopped at the photograph of the Captain and his little sister.

Though Chris looked like a completely different person now, Claire didn't change so much. Granted, she appeared more grown up and mature, but taking into consideration what happened between the day this picture was taken and this evening, no one would be able to tell what this woman had experienced.

Carefully, he put the pictures back, went to the bathroom and got ready for bed. He really wanted to get some rest, but before he actually laid down, he walked over to his big bedroom window that went from the floor up to the ceiling.

He stared outside for a couple minutes, observing the how countless snowflakes quietly covered the roofs of Manhattan and the treetops of Central Park. He didn't have eyes for the beauty he saw right in front of him though, that wasn't the reason why he looked outside.

Piers used the tranquility of his view to think back to the way Claire had looked tonight. She didn't wear her hair up in a pony tail, but let her long auburn locks frame her face. That and the turquoise blouse had brought out the grey in her eyes in a way Piers couldn't even begin to describe. He wondered if she had noticed how he just couldn't look away from her for the whole night.

Yes, she was attractive, he was well aware of that the moment he laid eyes on her when she almost ran into him at the BSAA HQ. His time here in New York gave Piers the chance to meet a lot of beautiful women. His profession made it easy for him to make an impression, so whenever he felt the need for some _"company"_ , it was quite easy for him to find a girl that needed just the same and nothing more. It didn't happen often, but it happened. None of those girls he ever considered as something more than a fling...but with Claire it seemed like a whole other story. This wasn't just about her looks.

Claire was _different._ For some reason he was fascinated. She wasn't a girl who'd be impressed by the sheer fact that he was working for the BSAA. She knew what the real world was like, cause she lived it...she went through more than he could even begin to imagine and still managed to be the way she was. Simply intriguing.

 _And it has nothing to do with her being the Captain's sister, right?_

He did not like the idea that his fondness of Claire was founded on the fact that she was related to his Captain. Piers had tried to push this thought aside since they first met, but to no avail. He wasn't sure to which degree it contributed to his level of interest in Claire Redfield. If he really wanted to find an answer to the question, he had to wait until he got to know her better. If she gave him the chance.

Though he was thankful about the way she opened up to him tonight, there were still so many more things he wanted to know about her. Her involvement with the BSAA and her past were one thing.

And though he tried to deny it, he was also pretty curious about her story with Leon Kennedy. He tried to remember the evening he encountered the DSO Agent. Chris had introduced him as an old friend of his, then they chatted for a while and promised they'd meet up for a beer soon. Piers wondered if they ever did.

While all these thoughts kept running through is head, he was still staring outside. This way of standing at the window and watching the world underneath had become some kind of everyday ritual. It helped him to process everything that was happening in his life and it calmed him down.

After a couple more minutes Piers went to find Claire's business card he had received a week ago and collected Claire's phone number. He wondered if it would be appropriate to text her before bed...

"Hey Claire, I hope you got home save. I had an amazing evening, hope to see you again soon. - Piers"

He sighted.

 _Come up with something better or leave it be._

With that thought, he deleted the message and went to bed.


	4. Chapter 3

**Author's Note:** As promised, the next chapter :D Thanks for reading!

Caddy

* * *

When Claire went to bed that night, she couldn't help but wish to receive another message from Piers. When she didn't hear from him, she was disappointed even if she had no right to be. From the start, the meeting at McGee's was supposed to be a onetime thing. Piers wanted pictures of "old" Chris, he was just curious about his Captain and about his private life. He got the pictures and more details than he could have asked for, so now this matter should be over.

Yes, it _was_ supposed to be a onetime thing, no doubt...but it didn't take Claire more than ten minutes with Piers to figure out that he was a person she wanted to learn more about...she'd need more than three hours and five beers. And the way he said good bye lead her to believe that the matter was very far from being over.

Before she closed her eyes, she came to the decision that it would be for the best if she didn't see him again. He was BSAA, just like her brother and it was enough for her to say good bye to him before each missions, she didn't need someone else in her life that she had to worry for. And when she fell asleep, she had convinced herself that she would go through with it...

* * *

 **Saturday**

Claire's phone buzzed in her pocket while she was out shopping for groceries. Almost every Sunday her brother stopped by to have either lunch or dinner with her, so she had to be prepared for the next day. Her phone didn't recognize the number.

"Hello? This is Claire Redfield.", she answered. She was used to unknown phone calls, most of them were work related since she didn't have a business phone.

"Hey Claire, it's Piers.", she felt how her heart dropped from her chest. This was the call she didn't dare to hope for. And just like that, the decision she made before falling asleep was erased from her thoughts.

"Got your number from your business card, but I hope you don't mind me calling outside your working hours.", he continued while she started to put two and two together.

 _The business card...I completely forgot._

"No! Not at all. But wait...aren't _you_ at work?", she remembered him mentioning that he had to be at the HQ this Saturday.

"Well yeah, your brother is pretty hard on us, but he lets us have our breaks.", she heard him chuckle from the other side of the line and realized that she liked that sound more than she cared to admit.

"So I figured it would be a good time to ask for your plans tonight. Are you free?", Piers went on. She stayed completely silent and tried to think of a good response. Two voices in her head argued whether she should make up a story why she wasn't available this evening or if she should just go along with it. When Piers didn't get an answer from Claire, he continued:

"I'm sorry, I don't wanna be too straight forward, but after last night I-.",

"It's fine.", she finally said and interrupted him with these words. "I'm free. What do you have in mind?", she was annoyed by herself and how easy she gave in. Just like that, when she knew she should not.

 _Dammit, Claire. You have the determination of a fat girl in a pastry shop._

"Would you be up for pizza at my place?", this suggestion came unexpected.

"At your place?", she asked without thinking about it first.

"Yeah, don't wanna run into one of your ex boyfriends again, you see?", he laughed softly.

"Same here...sooo...when do I have to be where exactly?", she noticed how this conversation went from 0 to 100 in no time. Two minutes ago she thought meeting up with him in general was a bad idea, how was meeting up with him in private any better?

"8pm, I'll text you the adress.", it sounded more like a question.

"Fine, I'll see you then.", she broke off the call at this point, though she wished to keep on talking.

"See you then. Bye.", and just like that, he hung up.

 _Oh Claire, what did you get yourself into now?_

She dressed up casual, just like the night before. She didn't want to send him any mixed signals with her outfit as long as she wasn't sure how to feel about all this. She hoped tonight would help her to figure it out.

When Piers opened the door to his apartment, she was relieved to see that he didn't pay too much attention to his outfit either. He was wearing a black shirt and jeans, his hair was messy and apparently still wet from the shower.

"I'm glad you could make it, the roads are terrible tonight.", he hugged her and she wasn't sure if the hug lasted longer than the average hug...if there was such a thing. He smelled incredible.

"Tell me about it. Glad the cab driver was able to get me here in one piece.", she smiled and entered his apartment. After she took of her boots, he walked her into his spacious living room.

The first thing she noticed were the oversized windows that replaced the outer wall and which let her have a look at the lights of New York. The room was furnished in a modern way and painted white, but the tall walls were reflected the cozy warm lights of the flame burning inside a little fire place. Claire attention was caught by some pictures on the wall, but it was too dark to see any details.

"Wow, how much do you make exactly?", she asked as she still looked around and found more things to admire.

"Honestly, not enough to afford this. The BSAA pays most of it. It's how they win over new recruits. Pretty smart, huh?"

"Sending out my application tomorrow.", she joked and walked over to look at one of the pictures more closely. It showed a beautiful fair haired woman in her early thirties, she was holding hands with two little boys who shared her hair color. Next them stood a man who looked a whole lot like Piers, he was carrying a boy on his shoulders, though this boy was younger than the other two. Based on their surroundings and the clothes they were wearing, they seemed to be out on a hike.

"My parents, my brothers and I.", he pointed at the little boy that was sitting on his father's shoulders. Claire remembered that he mentioned them last night. They were originally from Ohio. His grandfather was part of the military, as well as his dad. That explained why he had decided to work for the BSAA. His Mom was a high school teacher and his big brothers were working in Los Angeles. So far so normal.

"Don't you miss them?", she knew that she missed her parents.

"I do. They are pretty bummed out that I won't be there for Christmas this year, but I promised to pay a visit as soon as I am back from Edonia.", while Piers smiled, Claire frowned at the remark and the mention of Edonia. 'Bummed out' wasn't exactly the way she would describe her feelings towards the fact that Chris would risk his life on the other side of the world, while she would try to celebrate Christmas. Piers wasn't afraid of what would happen, just like Chris. But Claire was.

"Did I say something wrong?", he had noticed the look on her face.

"Don't worry, it's nothing...So where's the pizza I was promised?", she changed the subject and looked at him expectantly.

"Why? Are you in a hurry?", he replied cheerful, but she could hear a little concern in his voice.

"No, just hungry.", she walked over to the couch and sat down.

"I thought we can order some, we have the best pizza places around. It might take a while on a Saturday though."

After a short discussion about where they'd get the best pizza from, they placed their order and chatted a little. Somewhere in between, Piers turned on the radio so there conversation was accompanied with some Christmas music.

"How was work?", Claire could tell that he wasn't home for long before she showed up, so it was another long day for him.

"Shooting practice almost the whole day. Got some new people I was assigned to instruct. Not too bad. I like that part of the job.", he smiled and took a look at his watch.

"I see. Did you tell your team about...last night?", that was something Claire thought about since she left the bar yesterday night. She didn't really want anyone to know that they met...for whatever reason. Piers answered without hesitation.

"Oh yeah, I had to. Had a bet running with them that I'd get you to go out with me. That's what I pay the pizza with today.", Claire raised her eyebrows. Then he laughed.

"You believed me for a couple seconds there, didn't you? No, I did not tell them.", he paused for a moment "...and they wouldn't have believed me anyways.", he blushed barely noticeable. "At least not unless I showed them the pictures you gave me and I wanna save those for a day when the Captain pisses me off.", he added and laughed again.

"I'm sorry the night ended so abruptly, I would have loved to stay a little longer.", she confessed.

"Same here. But it's fine. Things got awkward when young Brad Pitt walked in.", she couldn't help but laugh.

"Yeah but it shouldn't have bothered me. We are done for more than three years now and that's longer than our relationship even lasted.", she said and rolled her eyes.

She could see in his eyes that there was something he wanted to ask, but wasn't sure if it was appropriate.

"What is it?"

"It's really none of my business. I don't want to step a line here."

"It's fine. Ask all you want, I can always refuse to answer.", she smiled and he hesitated for a couple more seconds until he finally spoke.

"What happened? I mean with you two. How did it end?", she should have seen this one coming, still she didn't know where to start and how to finish. It was too complicated and would probably take hours to explain.

"He fell for someone else.", she simply concluded. There was a lot more behind it, but it was the truth and it was all Piers needed to know for now. As she spoke those words, she noticed how it still hurt in a way. There was no affection left for Leon, but the feeling of being inferior, of not being enough for him still cut deep.

"That doesn't make sense. I mean...how could he?", she felt goose bumps crawling up and down her spine when he spoke those words in his soft voice.

"I guess we just weren't meant to be. That happens.", she didn't answer his question, because she didn't know how and tried not to let him notice how his words affected her. She was thinking about something else to say, when she noticed how he slowly moved closer to her.

"His loss.", he smiled and she wasn't sure if he leaned in a little when he spoke those words. Was he waiting for a move from her side? There was no time to explore this thought any further, because she felt her phone in her pocket. Piers was so close by now that he noticed it as well.

"Sorry.", she said quickly and went for her phone, looking at the screen. "It's Jill. I think I need to get that." , every time she called her, Claire was afraid it was something serious.

"Jill? What's up?"

"What the _hell_ are you doing with Piers Nivans at McGees?", Jill's asked so loudly that Claire was pretty sure that Piers was able to hear her through the speaker. Claire's eyes widened and she almost jumped up. Awkward.

"Excuse me.", she whispered to Piers and went to leave the room.

"Pardon?", she could hear Jill ask from the other side of the line.

"I wasn't talking to you."

"Then who are you talking to? Wait. Are you with him right now? What the fuck, Claire?", things were getting serious when Jill Valentines she started to swear.

"How do you even know?", her words barely a whisper when she closed the bathroom door behind her.

"Leon just texted me. He saw you two last night."

"That nosy motherfucker. It's none of his business.", Claire rolled her eyes and felt sudden rush of anger. If he was so interested in who she met up with he could have asked her himself. She noticed how Jill hesitated on the other site of the line, her voice was a lot calmer when she continued.

"I'm sorry. It's none of my business either. I'm just worried about you.", Claire felt a mix of sympathy and anger towards the the woman she considered a friend for so many years by now.

"Piers was interested about Chris' past, because _you_ apparently told him how different he was a couple years back. That's why we met last night.", Jill went silent for a moment, but Claire could hear her breathe.

"Oh I remember that day...I had another fight with him about God knows what in his office and Piers was there as well. After Chris stormed out I just tried to explain that he used to handle things differently before.", Jill sounded sad and Claire felt bad that she brought this subject up, but Jill wanted to know after all.

"But that doesn't explain...why are you with him right now?", she added, her sadness vanished from her voice as fast as it had appeared.

"I never said I was.", Claire lied. Behind the bathroom door the door bell rang, pizza was here. She heard muffled voices in the hall way.

"Don't avoid my question.", was she really that transparent?

"Fine. We're having pizza at his place. Just don't tell Chris.", she whispered again, knowing that Piers was paying for the pizza right in front of the bathroom door.

"And now I _really_ have to go. I will call you tomorrow. Bye.", she hung up without waiting for a response and left the bathroom. Piers was standing in his hallway with two big boxes in his hand. Claire couldn't tell if he had been able to overhear parts of her conversation with Jill.

"Dinner's ready.", he announced with the sweetest smile and went back to the living room.

"I'm sorry about that. I thought it might be something important.", she said embarrassed and sat down on the couch next to him.

"I'm glad it wasn't. Otherwise you'd probably just leave right away.", when he put down the pizza boxes on the table, she noticed that he poured them two glasses of red wine. Pizza and wine. What a combination.

She was wondering why he didn't ask about the whereabouts of Jill's call. He had to be curious. She was sure as hell that he knew it was about him after Jill blurted out her first sentence. He didn't mention it during the whole time they ate.

They simply talked about the weather and the snow that had been falling since last night, how much they both enjoyed winter time in NY and how neither of them had been skating at the rink in front of the Rockefeller Center.

After two hours of talking and with her third glass of wine in her hand, Claire decided to bring up the call again. She wanted to explain and she didn't want him to think she kept any secrets.

"So...just to make things clear. Jill heard about our meeting last night through the grapevine."

"I swear I didn't tell anyone at work. I promise.", he held up his hands.

"I know, she got it from Leon.", she hated how present he was in the last 24 hours. She hadn't even thought about him in weeks and now this.

"What does he care?", he asked. Piers tried his best to sound casual, but Claire could tell that he really wanted to know. But the same question was running through her mind since she left the bathroom. "I don't know.", but she had an idea.

"Maybe he wants to get back with you, after he saw you last night.", she just rolled her eyes at this comment and emptied her glass, she could feel how her cheeks glow. Wine worked a lot faster for her than beer.

"Yeah sure.", though their communication was scarce in the past years, she knew Leon pretty damn well. "Like I said yesterday, after I ended things with him, he-"

"Wait, _you_ broke up with him? You said he left you for another chic.", he interrupted her.

"I said he _fell_ for someone else. He didn't tell me, I never caught them red handed or whatever. It was just that easy to see. It's an awful feeling, but I figured it would be the best for us to part ways. And though a little part of me hoped he'd fight for the relationship, he never did. He was glad that I was the one who put an end to it.", Piers noticed her empty glass and took care of it immediately. She knew it was time to stop with the red wine.

"But he still cared for me, he wanted to stay friends and I was the one who closed that door. I think he feels bad about how things went down and that's why he still cares, even after three years. He was the one who helped me in Raccoon and that's a connection that will always remain. Maybe he still feels some kind of responsibility for me, I don't know...but he should have noticed by now that I don't need his supervision.", it was hard for her to cut all the ties to Leon since they shared the same group of friends and also their job forced them to deal with each other once in a while.

"The same goes for Jill and my brother. They want to take care of me and I appreciate their concern, I do, but sometimes I feel pretty...smothered.", never before she talked about these feelings. She didn't want to appear ungrateful.

"You don't need anyone to take care of you. I have the feeling everyone's trying to protect you, but you need no one's protection.", Claire shivered again. He read her like a book, how could he know here so well in so little time? She stayed silent as he went on.

"That's what I like about you. Don't get me wrong, I know we just met...but it's not hard to see that you are funny, kind, strong, independent and incredibly intelligent.", since her face was already red from the wine, she was sure that he didn't notice her blushing.

"Thank you, Piers. You are not too bad yourself.", she winked and started drinking from her freshly filled glass of wine. When she noticed that he reduced the space between them once again, Claire set down her glass and got up from the couch to walk over to the big window. She could feel the wine in her legs and wondered if it was such a good idea to drink this much in the presence of Piers, she still had to get home somehow.

"What are you looking at?", he asked still sitting on the couch, observing her.

"Nothing. Just the snow and the lights.", she thought if she'd live at this place, she'd probably spent all of her evenings in front of that window and admire how the seasons change in front of it.

In the corner of her eye she saw how Piers got up from his seat to stand behind her.

"I actually do this quite often, just standing at the window and looking at the small people outside. The world seems okay here...and it helps me think.", he confessed and she thought she liked that habit. She'd probably be just the same.

"What are you thinking about?", she was curious and with the vine in her veins she felt brave enough to ask personal questions.

"Everything. My day, my job, my family, my future.", she felt how he laid his hand on her hips, she didn't protest.

"What are you thinking about right now?"; she asked, still not looking away from the window, but she shifted her focus from outside to the reflection of Piers in the window glass. It was blurry, but thanks to the dim lights in his apartment she could see his face clear enough. Their eyes crossed in the reflection. Another shiver.

"Piers, I...", she didn't even know where she wanted to go with this sentence, and it didn't matter, because within a part of second, he turned her around and laid his lips on hers.

She knew it would happen, she knew it from the moment their eyes locked. She knew she wanted it since they said good bye last night.

His lips felt warm and soft on hers and when she opened her mouth just a little bit to allow him to explore her, she could still taste the wine on him.

"Sorry.", was the first thing he said after they parted. "I wanted to, I just had to.", he smiled, his cheeks burning red.

She didn't say a word, but took his face in her hands and kissed him again, this time with more force. She didn't care about the consequences, this felt good and it felt right, so why should she deny herself this little bit of happiness?

Her straightforwardness helped him gain confidence, as she could feel his hands travel from up her back. She enjoyed his touch and she didn't want it to end, but something in her head told her to stop. She heard Jill's voice in her thoughts. She stopped the kiss before it could get out of hand.

"I should probably go now. I'm way too drunk to make important decisions.", his look told her that he knew what she was referring to.

"What if I want you to stay?", he tried to kiss her again, this time she refused.

"I can't.", she didn't want to read him a list of reasons why she had to go, so she just hoped that he'd give him before she would change her mind.

"I understand.", he took a step back and looked outside again, she followed his gaze. "You sure you wanna go out there? I can take the couch if you want, it's no big deal."

Claire didn't know Piers well enough to make out if this was just a way to convince her to stay the night. She wished she could read her thoughts.

"I've seen worse, believe me.", and with that she rejected his offer. She went over to the table, finished the last sip of wine and put on her boots in the hallway.

"Then let me be a gentleman and let me take you down until you found a cab.", she thought about turning this offer down as well, but she saw no reason to. He put on his coat and held the door open for her. To avoid awkward silence in the elevator, she went for some small talk.

"Couldn't have wished for a better Saturday night, thank you.", she said and smiled. He returned her smile, but she was sure she could see a little bit of disappointment in his eyes. Maybe it was just the wine. Maybe he was just tired.

"I hope I wasn't too straightforward, it wasn't my intention to make things weird.", the elevator announced their arrival on the first floor with a loud bing. "

"You weren't...and you did not.", she replied as she walked out of the elevator into the lobby. It was empty by now. "I just have a lot on my mind, let us talk about it some other time, please.", she didn't know what to say to him, because she didn't know what to think.

"Sure...", his voice was quiet and soft, she noticed how he avoided eye contact with her when he held the door open. The streets were still busy and it didn't take long until a cab pulled up by Claire's side.

"Have a good night, Claire.", he leaned in for a hug, but Claire turned her face and gave him a short peck on the lips. It felt surreal, but good. She sat down in the back seat of the cab and watched him look after her as she drove off in the snowy night of New York.


	5. Chapter 4

**Author's Note:** It's alive! Unbelievable, I know. I am really sorry that it took 8 (!) months to write another chapter. I just wasn't happy with the ideas I had, because I was worried that all the talking might be too boring. Still I think those dialogues are kinda important to draw their characters the way I want them to. So I really hope the next chapter won't take that long to write :D As always, I am looking forward to reviews and constructive criticism.

~Caddy

* * *

 **Sunday**

"Claire, this is amazing. How did you do that?", Chris asked while eating the sour cream-chicken enchiladas Claire made for him. "These are the times I realize how much you come after Mom.", he smiled and took another bite.

"It's not even that hard to do, honestly.", she replied humbly. Claire was an outstanding cook and she enjoyed pampering her brother at least once in awhile. It wasn't set in stone, but usually he'd swing by her place on a Sunday.

"Ditch TerraSave and open up your own restaurant.", he said as he put another enchilada on his plate.

"Only if you ditch the BSAA and work as my waiter.", she replied.

"Don't start with this shit again, Claire.", he said and rolled his eyes.

"Well, then just stay here and work as an instructor, you gave enough for the BSAA. It's someone else's turn.", Chris stared down on his plate and pretended not to listen.

"You just don't say anything, 'cause you know I'm right." she added and tried to stay calm. She knew how much his job as a Captain meant to him, but was it really worth his life?

"You start to sound like Jill.", he finally replied.

"So? She has as many reasons as I do to keep you here. What did she say when you told her you were going to Edonia?", now Chris finally looked up.

"She doesn't know...yet", he gave back shortly and continued to eat.

"She doesn't- WHAT?", Claire couldn't believe what she just heard.

"I told her I'd only be a consultant for the mission and stay in NY, but I changed my mind after our last big fight.", Claire just shook her head.

 _Unbelievable...be happy that I didn't tell her..._

"You are breaking her heart. You are breaking my heart for that matter...", she couldn't hide the sadness in her tone.

"She won't even notice I'm gone and I will be back in no time."

" _If_ you come back.", it just came out of Claire's mouth, she didn't even think about it.

"Hey...don't say that. I always come back.", he replied in a soft voice.

"Yeah, up until the day that you won't."

"I don't want you to agree with me on this, I just need you to understand. I need this for me. There's so much on the line and I don't want my team to go through it without me.", he tried to explain. "I know, you are right. I uh...I just need this mission to get away from the shit that's happening here. You know? Things between me and Jill are so messed up right now, but I wanna take care of this as soon as I get back."

"Promise?", she asked. She just didn't want to discuss this topic it any longer. All of them had their demons and she wanted to be there for her brother the best she could.

"Promise.", he replied. "So now tell me about that text that you just got, before we discussed your cooking skills."

"W-What?", Claire was caught completely off guard.

"I saw you checking your phone and you were smiling like an idiot, so I know there must be something going on. You can't fool me.", he smiled.

"It's nothing, really.", she knew that this wasn't the answer he wanted to hear, she just wasn't quick enough to make something up.

"Claire.", he said emphatically.

She hesitated for another moment, but then she decided to tell him. What was there to lose?

"I kindasortamaybe had a date last night.", Chris eyes widened at those words and to her it seemed like he had expected something like that. At the same time he didn't expect it at all...or at least he didn't expect her to tell him so frankly.

"With whom? Where? Why? And what now?", apparently Chris wasn't sure what he wanted to know first.

"Nothing, but that's where that text came from.", she replied, avoiding to answer any of his questions.

"Yeah I noticed that, but who the fuck is he?", though he started to swear, he didn't sound angry, just curious.

"It's not Neil, right? Cause I swear to God if you're going out with this-."

"No! It's not Neil. Don't worry. I just don't see why you hate him so much, he's a great boss, everyone at TerraSave adores him.", Claire thought back to the day when she first met Neil. From the start he was handsome, capable and intelligent and this first impression turned out to be accurate. Still their relationship stayed strictly professional, though she couldn't deny some occasional flirting between them.

"I just don't like this guy, something seems off with him...", Chris continued and Claire knew he just said that because Chris was convinced that Neil was trying to get into her pants...she thought it was just a big brother thing. And that was exactly why he wasn't supposed to know that she met up with Piers. Not yet.

"So now tell me more about Mr. X.", Claire's small hope that he'd drop the subject and go on about his rant at Neil vanished with those words.

"I met him a couple days ago and we just decided to grab a beer, chat a little. Nothing special.", she wasn't exactly lying, she just avoided mentioning some facts. And she didn't think about telling him that she actually met up with him twice.

"Oh come on, Claire. I'm your brother, be a little more specific!"

"That's exactly the reason why I won't be any more specific. You are ruining my dates since I am 14 years old.", she said and laughed a little.

"That's not true!"

Claire decided there was no point in discussing, but sooner or later she'd bring up the fact that she had to go to prom with a friend because no boy at school dared to ask her out.

"What's his name?", he asked again.

"I won't tell you.", she rolled her eyes and put the plates together.

"Do I know him?"

"What? No!", she replied a little too forceful.

"So I do know him...You are sure it's not Neil?", he looked up to the ceiling and looked like he tried to remember every guy he knew.

"Stop it, Chris. I already told you too much.", from her voice he could sense that he was stepping a line. So he stayed silent for a couple seconds. Claire used those seconds to make up her mind once again. Why should she keep this from him? Piers and her were both grownups and there was nothing Chris could reasonably do to keep them from seeing each other.

He wouldn't kick him out of the BSAA, would he? He might be a little pissed at first, but it would piss him off even more when he'd find out that they were going out with each other behind his back. So she'd have to tell him rather sooner than later. A couple years ago, when she started dating Leon, Chris was hesitant at first. He didn't know Leon, so he didn't trust in him being a good match for Claire. They ended up getting along just fine and even if he had never admitted it, Claire could tell that he was sad about their break up. She wondered if he already knew that Leon was in town.

And Chris knew Piers already, better than anyone actually. So this shouldn't be a problem.

"Listen, I'm gonna tell you. Promise me you won't freak out.", Chris looked surprised as is he seemed certain that Claire would never give in.

The doorbell rang the moment he opened his mouth.

"You've got to be kidding me...expecting someone?", he got up and went for the door.

 _Piers..._

This was her first thought and she dearly hoped that she was wrong. She wanted to tell Chris, but she didn't know how she'd explain him showing up at her front door.

"Not really.", she answered a reluctantly, unsure if Chris had even heard her. Then she heard a familiar female voice from the front door and relaxed Jill. She tensed up again, put the empty plates down in the sink and followed Chris to the door.

Claire was surprised to see her, usually Jill would announce a visit, but then Claire remembered that she never called her after last night like she promised her to. So Jill was probably just checking in on her.

"Hey Claire, I hope I am not interrupting the weekly Redfield get-together.", she smiled kindly as she took off her coat and hat. Claire returned her smile, before she could answer Chris took it upon himself to ruin the mood.

"Not you aren't interrupting anything. I was just about to leave.", he didn't smile and his voice was cold. Not even ten minutes ago he told Claire how much he wanted to set things right between him and Jill and now he treated her like a stranger. Apparently he wanted to get out of here so badly that he suddenly lost all interest in knowing about Claire's date.

"That's too bad, I still have desert.", Claire felt a little sick seeing them interact in this way. She knew in another life they'd be married with kids.

"You girls should share it. I had way too many enchiladas.", he tried to make it sound casual while he put on his boots and jacket and, but when Claire shifted her gaze to her brother she could see how tensed he was after Jill's arrival.

"I'll see you tomorrow.", a small nod towards Jill. That was it. "Thanks for lunch, Claire. I'll call you next week.", and just like that, he walked out the door.

"Wow...that was-"

"Awkward.", Jill finished Claire's sentence with a stern look on her face.

"Just try working with this mule.", she rolled her eyes and she turned towards Claire.

"I'm sorry, I didn't wanna ruin your Sunday afternoon. I knew he was here, I saw his truck outside, but I didn't expect him to act like this.", she hugged her softly, though Claire couldn't shake off the thought that Jill was the one who needed a hug right now.

"Don't worry, you didn't. I don't think he would have stayed much longer anyways, usually he leaves immediately after lunch.", still Claire was pretty sure that Jill's arrival was the cause for Chris' "escape".

"We had a bigger disagreement about a week ago and we didn't speak since.", Jill explained and Claire wondered if this was the big fight Chris was referring to earlier. The fight that made him want to go to Edonia.

"I thought we could speak normally if we'd just meet on neutral ground. Guess I was wrong.", those last words almost broke Claire's heart.

"You know how he can be, I think you just caught him off guard.", she had to bite her tongue, because she wanted to tell her how Chris planned to make amends as soon as he'd return from Edonia. But it wasn't her obligation to tell Jill. How will she react when she finds out that he's leaving?

"And I'm just tired, Claire. I want things to be the way they were before Africa.", Claire thought back to the day Chris and Jill returned. Before the mission in Kijuju, Jill was presumed dead, so when she arrived in NY no one could believe that Ms fucking Valentine was back for good. Claire was so damn sure that they'd end up together in no time, that they'd be partners again, but things took a turn for the worse. Jill struggled from PTSD so badly that Chris just couldn't keep up. He couldn't deal with the fact that his old partner pushed him away, that there was nothing in his power he could do to help her. Every time it seemed like they figured things out, they started to fight again. Never ending story. It's like they couldn't live with each other, but they most definitely weren't able to live without each other. Jill continued to work for the BSAA but she never went back on the field after Kijuju and she expected Chris to do the same. Thanks to therapy Jill's condition was stable for now, but Claire knew she still had night terrors.

"I know, me too.", she sighed.

 _I want things to be the way they were before Raccoon._

"Sit down on the couch, I'll get you a tea.", Jill took off her boots and got comfortable in the living room while Claire walked in the kitchen.

"So how are the roads today? I barely made it home last night.", she had asked Chris the same question when he arrived, she just wanted to change the subject for now. She knew sooner or later they'd talk about her brother again. After she filled the kettle with water she waited in the door frame to chat with Jill.

"Well the weather calmed down this morning, so it could be worse. If you know how to drive, nothing should happen.", Claire could see a quick smile flicker over Jill's lips.

"You aren't here to piss off my brother, right? You want to know what happened after your call last night, don't you?", Claire asked bluntly and grinned as Jill's smile turned bigger.

"Can't deny a little bit of curiosity. I waited for your to call me back all morning.", she admitted and Claire went back to the kitchen to get their beverages.

"I was home at around 4.30am, so I slept in and then I was busy preparing lunch. I even had to pay the neighbor's child to take care of my driveway! So what about a little patience, Ms Valentine?", she put down the cups on the table and sat next to Jill on the couch..

"4.30am?!", Jill repeated disbelievingly. "What did you do until 4.30?"

"First of all it took me one and a half hours to get home, because the weather was so awful and I think my cab driver was intoxicated.", Claire laughed a little. The driver was fine, she was the one who was fairly drunk.

"Then what did you do till 3am?", Claire could hear a hint of impatience in her voice.

"Talk.", Claire couldn't help but smile.

"Talk…? Sure.", Claire could sense how her impatience grew. And she enjoyed it a little, but she decided not to keep her in suspense any longer.

"It's no lie, we talked for almost the whole night."

"Almost?"

"Yeah, up until the moment when we didn't talk anymore.", Jill's eyes grew.

"Whow, Jill, don't worry, we kept it G-rated.", Claire chuckled. And she noticed how much she enjoyed kind of conversation. She can't remember the last time she just chatting about her a date like normal people would do.

"Dammit, Claire. Spit it out!", her impatience was accompanied by just a tiny little bit of annoyance.

So Claire started from the beginning, how they met at the BSAA headquarters, how he sent her an email and asked for pictures of Chris, how they met up at McGee's and how they ran into Leon.

"How did it make you feel?", their breakup happened shortly before Jill's disappearance, so she was Claire's shoulder to cry on. Though she never actually cried about the end of their relationship, she still needed someone to talk to. And Jill was a great listener.

"Seeing Leon again? Hm, I was pretty annoyed. After Chris he's the last person I want to see while hanging out with Piers.", she laughed a little.

"But it was okay, I'm not holding any grudges.", Jill seemed happy with that answer.

"What are the odds, right?"

"Just my kind of luck.", Claire shrugged it off.

"Are you gonna meet up with him soon?", Claire knew for a fact that both Jill and Chris get along with Leon very well and that they meet whenever they get the chance...which doesn't happen to often.

"Didn't find any time to do so yet. He's here on vacation to visit his family and he's gonna stay till after New Years."

"So you're saying I shouldn't leave the house until then?", as she went on with her narration she could see how the look on Jill's face grew more and more concerned. She talked about her conversations with Piers, how he seemed to read her mind and how he was able to say the right things at the right moments...and of course how he got her drunk with red wine. And finally how they made out in front of his big ass windows. She confessed how bad she wanted to stay at this moment and how everything was weird when she decided to leave.

"I'm really not sure how to feel about all this. And I really hate meeting up with Chris' 1st lieutenant behind his back.", she shrugged. "I actually tried to tell him about it, but you rang the doorbell at just the right moment and after that he just wanted to get the fuck out of here.", Jill laughed a little, but her look on her face stayed the same.

"Timing's a bitch, huh?"

"Maybe not. I can see the way you look at me right now...I can only imagine Chris' reaction. So I guess it's better to leave my brother out of this for as long as possible.", Claire noticed how her heart got heavy again after reliving all the nice moments she shared with Piers this weekend. She was aware that Jill would hit her with reality really hard in 3...2...1…

"I'm just worried. I don't want you to get hurt.", Claire appreciated her concern, but she was certain that the main reason for Jill's hesitation was something else. She thought back to the first guy she went out with after breaking up with Leon. At that time, she thought it wouldn't hurt to give it at least a try. Jill was over the moon and she encouraged her to just go for it. To make a living, this guy was selling insurances, a stable and honorable nine-to-five job. But Claire couldn't see herself with a man who didn't know the real world, who didn't know or believe what _really_ happens out there. That's why she got along with Leon and she was certain that that's also one of many reasons why she was intrigued by Piers. They were here to make a difference in the world.

"I appreciate you looking out for me, I really do.", she said with a lot compassion in her voice. Jill had enough problems to deal with and still she wanted to be there for Claire and offered her advice. There was nothing in this world Claire could do or say that would show how valuable Jill's friendship was to her.

"You know how me and your brother fight all the time. We used to fight when we were in STARS, we had fights when we founded the BSAA. We needed those fights to stay on our toes and we were equals when we yelled at each other. In a way, it strengthened our relationship, our partnership. We could be honest with each other, at all times and under any circumstances. And now, after Africa, it all turned to poison. It poisoned the relationship with the only man I ever loved and I don't know how to get out of this.", Jill's voice got quieter with her last sentence.

"We changed. Chris and I both. Me probably more than he did. And it was too late before I realized it.", she sighed.

"That's why I am looking out for you. I don't ever want you to feel the way I do.", though she sounded sad, her voice was stable and calm.

"I'm sure you know this feeling when he leaves for a mission and you don't know if he's going to return.", Claire nodded softly. She knew that feeling all too well. The closer Edonia came, the stronger it got. This knot in her stomach that wouldn't go away until her brother returned safely. She used to have a similar feeling when Leon was gone.

"Piers is young and fairly new to the BSAA. He'll go on missions for the next couple years.", Claire swallowed hard. Jill was right. And now it made sense why she wanted Claire to get with an "average" guy. Because Jill couldn't she wanted Claire to have the life she wasn't able to have.

"I know I can't tell you what to do. I just want you to be careful. I realized that feelings are something we can't afford. Still you can't do anything about them, I suppose."

Silence. Claire took a sip from her tea which was still way too hot. She didn't care. She needed some time to let Jill's words sink in. Jill gave her the advice to nip the relationship with Piers in the bud, so she wouldn't catch feelings. And though she didn't want to admit it, she found herself falling for him already...

"He shouldn't have sent you this email in the first place. This is so inappropriate. You are the Captain's sister for heaven's sake."

Claire was glad that Jill broke the silence.  
"Thank you, Jill… and I'm so sorry. I didn't know how you are feeling. I mean, I sure know about you and Chris, but I didn't know-."

"It's fine, I'm gonna be fine. I've always been. Maybe I should just get ready for a life without Christopher Redfield.", she smiled a little. And though Claire knew she didn't mean those words, that she couldn't possibly burn all the bridges to Chris, she started to think this might be the only way out for her.

"I don't think he'd be ready for a life without Jill Valentine.", Claire smiled softly at her and she was glad when she returned the smile.

"You are right with everything you said...I'm gonna talk to Piers.", before she could change her mind again, she got her phone and started typing, but only after she re-read the message she got from Piers earlier. The one that made her smile while Chris was around:

* * *

 **I hope I didn't scare you away, let me try to make it up to you if I did**

* * *

If he only knew that he achieved the complete opposite. Since she got home last night she couldn't wait to see him again, but after the conversation with Jill, this yearning to be close to him was accompanied by a sour feeling in her guts. Her reply was a simple question:

* * *

 **Can I see you tonight?**


	6. Chapter 5

**Author's Note:** Here we go again! Thanks again for the kind reviews, especially to Xaori, because her words always put a smile on my face!

Since the RPG of me and my friend is sadly placed on hold for now, I used my RE withdrawal to keep on writing this story. That's why I only needed a month for an update, which is pretty fast by my standards. I started writing from Claire's perspective but decided after I was almost done that I'd prefer Piers' POV. So I hope you do to! :) October is gonna be pretty busy for me, but I will try my best to keep up the pace.

While writing this, I noticed some inconsistencies with previous chapters and I am really sorry about that. It annoys me more than anyone. If I am ever going to post another story after this one, I'll make sure to write the whole story before I post one chapter.

~Caddy

* * *

 **Sunday 6pm**

He was sitting inside the café in Brooklyn they agreed to meet at. Snow was falling once again, slowly and steady, yet not as heavy as the night before. The place was packed with people on this Sunday evening, so he decided not to wait outside for her, but rather save a table for them.

The last night had never left his mind and while he was waiting for Claire to arrive, he found himself thinking about it once again. She didn't stay the night and that fine with him. Convincing her to do so was never is objective, he was simply feeling brave and if the weather hadn't been that disastrous he would have never even dared to ask her. The one thing that troubled his thoughts was the way she acted after their kiss.

 _Kisses..._

He never intended to do or say something that would scare her off, something that would offend her in any way. If he hadn't caught any signs that she wanted him too, he wouldn't have made a move on her in the first place. When she gave in to the kiss, she didn't push him away, she didn't say that he stepped a line. No, she leaned into it, she touched him, she wanted him. And during that exact moment, something must have happened in her mind. Something he dreaded to find out.

This feeling was new to him. When he met with women he didn't care much about how, when or even if they'd meet again. He enjoyed their company and that was about it, but this thing with Claire was something entirely different. He liked her, he cared what she thought about him and the fear of messing things up with her was something he never encountered before.

When he finally saw her walking through the door, he immediately woke up from his daydream and with a small wave he called for her attention. A gentle smile on her face made his stomach flutter.

"Sorry, I'm late. Shouldn't have underestimated the roads.", she began while taking off her coat and scarf. No hello, but her smile made up for that.

"It's fine, I am glad you made it in one piece.", he got up from his seat for a proper greeting,

"Good to see you again", his words were an understatement. He pulled her close for a hug and wrapped his arms around her, then he softly planted a kiss on her ice cold cheek and focused on her reaction.

"Are you okay?", the tension in her body didn't go unnoticed.

"No...I mean...yes, sure. I'm fine. Just a little exhausted. Not enough sleep and too much wine.", she avoided his gaze as she sat down which reinforced his feeling that something was up.

"Let me get you a coffee then. Black?", he pointed to the counter. A short nod. On his way to the barista, he could feel her eyes on him. Her behavior was similar to the way she acted when she left him the night before and it was still hard to grasp for him. To him it felt like she'd rather be anywhere else right now.

As he waited for their beverages, he wondered once again about the origin for her hesitancy. He had serious doubts about her excuse concerning the wine and the lack of sleep

As he walked back, she was buried so deep in her thoughts that she seemed startled when he put down the mugs in front of her.

Though it had been effortless and easy to talk to her the past two nights, this time she appeared distracted and distant, apart from the smile she had offered him as a greeting, she didn't seem happy at all. So he figured it was on him to break the ice.

"Sooo...how was lunch with the Captain?", he asked.

"Please, do me a favor and don't call him _Captain_ when you're with me. It's just weird. He's not _my_ Captain after all.", she sounded amused, but her face remained serious.

"What shall I call him then?", it didn't even happen intentional, it was just a habit.

"I don' t know, maybe...Chris? He definitely offered you to call him by first name. At least outside of work.", she was right, still it rarely seemed like an option to him.

"Yeah...but...it's just weird. I'll stick with Captain.", it's not like he could help it.

"Whatever.", she shrugged. "My brother obviously enjoyed the enchiladas, though I had to finish desert with Jill. She just showed up uninvited and Chris decided to leave the party.", she explained and Piers started to wonder if this was the reason for her reluctance. Unsure if he was supposed to ask any question or comment on his Captains behavior, he remained silent. So Claire went on.

"They are both so freaking stubborn that it really hurts to watch 'em, but I guess they have to figure it out on their own...somehow.", she finished and let out a deep sigh.

"I suppose.", Piers didn't really know what to say to this topic. Both of the people involved were his superiors, so he was ensure if he was entitled to have an opinion. At the same time he was sitting on this table with his superior's sister, so for her sake, he was probably supposed to have an opinion.

Sure, he had his own thoughts on this. He saw them fight a couple times at the headquarters, after all, so it was impossible to be unaware of the strained atmosphere between them. And it got worse, especially over the past couple months. In Claire's eyes he could see how she was suffering from their toxicity as she was falling between the cracks that Chris and Jill created. He noticed how her fingers were wrapped tightly around her mug, so without a second thought, he tried to reach for her hand. Only for her to lift her mug and take a sip from her beverage.

 _Ouch._

She deliberately avoided his touch now he knew for certain that something was up.

"When you stormed out of my apartment, I was really afraid I wouldn't hear from you again.", there was no point in beating around the bush and he got the slight feeling that she wanted to meet him here, because she intended to discuss just the same thing.

"I had a great time. I just-", she stopped as if she attempted to find a way to end her sentence. He didn't want to interrupt her train of thought and he most definitely didn't want to put words into her mouth, so he waited.

"I was just pretty drunk, wine is my kryptonite.", she smiled. She actually smiled.

"Well, remind me to go for another drink next time.", and with his words, her smile was gone.

"I...I really don't think there should be a next time.", she spoke slowly as if it was hard for her to say these words...and it was hard for him to hear them.

A pause. For a while that seemed like an eternity, no one said a thing. She waited for him to speak up.

"Well...deducing from your behavior, I can't say I'm too surprised. Still I hoped, I was wrong.", he couldn't hide the sadness in his voice and he didn't want to.

"I didn't expect things to turn out the way they did...", her voice was barely a whisper.

"Same for me.", he replied. "I'm sorry, if I-"

"No!", she interrupted him. "No. Don't be. It's not your fault, you did nothing wrong.", and for the first time this night, she looked him straight into the eyes. Her expression was sad, but determined.

"So there's nothing I could do or say to change your mind?", though he didn't understand, he'd respect her decision. He wouldn't beg. That wasn't his style, he'd have to accept whatever she came up with.

She slowly shook her head, but he wasn't ready to let go yet.

"May I ask you a question?", he asked with a firm voice. The sadness was gone...for now. She nodded.

"What are you afraid of?", he knew there had to be a reason why she pushed him away now in a way she didn't before.

"Afraid?", she laughed mockingly and confirmed his suspicion. She _was_ afraid.

"I'm not afraid of anything. I simply realized that a relationship like this would be highly inappropriate, considering how our jobs are entwined. How my brother is your boss.", she tried her best to sound as if she actually believed what she said. But he saw right through her.

"You wanna know what I think?", he looked down at his coffee, then back at her. He could feel his heart rate build up. It was all or nothing.

"Feel free.", she shrugged.

"You don't give a shit about your brother being my boss or anything that has something to do with the BSAA or TerraSave. That's bullshit and you know it.", she looked offended and opened her mouth, but he continued before she could raise her voice.

"You built up this wall around you. To keep everyone out...so no one can ever come close enough to hurt you.", it sounded way more reproachful than he intended.

"Stop pretending you know me, 'cause you don't.", she sounded angry. And he had a hunch that her anger was due to the fact that he was right.

"I won't hurt you, Claire. If you have any doubts about my intentions here, I am absolutely serious. About you.", he didn't expect that he'd have to tell her so frankly, those words came out of his mouth without thinking them through...but when he heard himself saying them out loud, he noticed that they were true.

"You think I'm afraid that you gonna break my fragile little heart? Don't worry, won't happen.", apparently she noticed how loud her voice had become, so she paused for a moment and continued a little quieter. "I'm sorry that you saw something between us that's just not there.", he suddenly felt sick to his stomach and was at loss for words.

"Two weeks ago you and I were nothing but strangers and we were doing absolutely fine. Let's just go back to that and forget whatever happened.", she explained and Piers noticed how people on the table next to them started to look over to them. Not like he cared...

"Then we are done here.", he concluded. There was nothing on his mind that would have made sense in any way and he didn't know what else to say without increasing her anger.

"We are. Just leave me the fuck alone.", she put five dollars on the table and looking him dead in the eye as she grabbed her clothes and went for the door.

 _Well, wasn't that fantastic?_

She was out of the café before he was even able to comprehend what just happened. For one second he wanted to get up and stop her from leaving. Just grab her, turn her around and pull her close for a kiss, the way he did last night. He decided not to. If he learned one thing about the Redfields it was that no one should get in their way in a moment of rage and he figured the streets of NY weren't ready a Redfield-storm-of-wrath tonight.

* * *

She needed a couple minutes in the front seat of her car to calm down and digest what just happened. It was easy to say that things didn't really go according to her plan. They were supposed to solve this like adults, but when he started to analyze her feelings and behavior she just snapped. He was spot on and it annoyed her so much that she was was unable to filter what was coming out of her mouth. And now he probably got the impression that she never even liked him. If only he knew how wrong he was. She did like him, she knew she was falling for him and that's why she was angry...at him and at herself.

She took out her phone and sent a text to Jill. She just needed to blow off some steam and she didn't really know how.

 **"I hate him and his stupid beautiful dimples."**

It was ridiculous how attracted she was to him. His touch made her skin crawl, the way he kissed her cheek made her freeze and his voice made her weak in the knees. She felt like a teenager in love.

 _Weren't you mad at him just seconds ago? Get yourself together, Redfield._

"Ugh...", she leaned forward and rested her forehead against the top of the steering wheel. She forgot that she was capable to have such a wide range of emotions and how hard it was to fight them. So maybe it was for the better that she yelled at him and told him to get out of her life. This way he might not want to get in touch with her ever again and sooner or later she might be able to forget about him.

Her phone buzzed in her hand and for a split second she hoped for a text from Piers.

 **"That bad? Wanna come over?"**

Jill's reply. She wasn't living too far away from here, but it was getting dark and Claire assumed that the snow wouldn't stop falling anytime soon. She appreciated Jill's concern, but she would rather be alone with her thoughts and a big cup of hot chocolate tonight.

 **"I'm fine. Just wanted to let you know I went through with it. I'll call you tomorrow after work."**

It was getting cold, so she started the engine to warm herself up a little. But she wasn't ready to leave the parking lot yet. She still needed to convince herself that she did the right thing tonight. His company made her feel good, yes, but he wasn't good for her. So it was reasonable to end it before it even began, even if that meant she had to lie to him. She sighed.

It sounded so much easier than it was, because it had already begun the moment he had sent her this email and now she had to find a way to come back from this. It has been such a long time since she was able to truly open up to someone especially a man. In no time, Piers had cracked her shell...or wall, how he called it. And it scared her. she _was_ afraid, he was indeed right about that. She was afraid that he'd make her fall in love with him, only for him to end up dying in battle. But she couldn't tell him that, right?

The simple thought of it created a lump in her throat.

It didn't matter now, she closed the chapter of Piers Nivans, she hoped that she made damn sure of that. Now she'd just have to get her feelings under control and everything would turn back to normal...and with his sad voice still in her mind, she drove off to her little house in Staten Island.


	7. Chapter 6

Here we go again! It has been two freaking years since I started writing this story. Unbelievable. I want to apologize to everyone who's actually waiting for an update. (I've been waiting myself, ha!)  
I will finish this story, promised. It just takes some time when you have sooo many other things to do.

So here it is. Chapter 6. Enjoy...as always, I am looking forward to some reviews. Thanks for reading!

~Caddy

For everyone who kind of forgot what happened in the previous chapters and doesn't want to go back, a little heads up:

Chapter 1: Piers meets Claire at the BSAA, he sends her the infamous mail, asking for pictures of her brother.

Chapter 2: They meet up at a bar. They get along very well. Leon interrupts their 'date'.

Bonus chapter: Piers is back at home and thinks about the evening with Claire., realizing he likes her.

Chapter 3: They meet up at Piers' place. Again, they get along very well and start to make out. Claire doesn't want to stay and leaves in a rush.

Chapter 4: Claire has lunch with Chris at her place. She finds out that he didn't tell Jill about the Edonia mission. Jill shows up for a surprise visit and Chris leaves. Jill is sad and disappointed thanks to Chris and advises Claire not to see Piers any longer.

Chapter 5: Claire meets Piers at a café and tells him she doesn't want to see him again.

* * *

Work managed to distract him from everything that was going on in his mind. Though he had expected to feel like shit this morning, he simply felt...nothing. There was an emptiness inside of his chest that was hard to grasp for him.

And this sensation made him wonder if Claire was right about what she said. They were nothing but strangers, so it didn't make a difference if she disappeared from his life. Maybe she was simply a someone that he'd keep in good memory. That's all.

The weird thing was that he just couldn't stop thinking about her.

"You look like shit, Nivans. Everything alright?" it was Finn who jolted him out of his daydreams.

"Me? Yeah, I'm fine.", and it was no lie. He might still be brooding about what happened last night, but for now he was feeling okay.

"You don't look fine to me. Wanna join?", Finn held up a pack of cigarettes right in front of Piers' face.

"You know we are not supposed to smoke here.", Piers answered, but his eyes said something else.

"No one's gonna know." Finn was right. And even if, they wouldn't get fired for smoking a cigarette at the back of the BSAA headquarters. Those words were everything that was necessary to convince him. A cigarette might help him to get rid of this tension inside his chest. Piers shrugged, got up from his desk and followed Finn out of one of the emergency exits.

"So what's up?", Finn asked again. And Piers knew that he wouldn't back down unless he got a satisfactory answer. By now, Piers knew him well enough to know that he wasn't nosy, even if it might seem this way. His heart was in the right place and Finn was genuinely concerned about Piers' wellbeing. So he decided to share his story with him. At least parts of it.

"Shitty weekend."

 _Only Sunday night though..._

After lighting his cigarette, he handed the lighter over to Finn. "Hmm...how so?", Finn replied as he blew out the smoke from his first drag.

"Got turned down pretty bad.", Piers tried to make it sound as if it was no big deal.

"You? Piers **fucking** Nivans? No way. I'd let you have my sister if I had one.", he laughed. Piers didn't miss the irony of this statement.

"Good to know... ", in the corner of his eye he saw the door open they had used to go outside just a few moments ago. Finn instantly dropped his cigarette on the ground and immediately stepped on it.

"Captain!", he exclaimed surprised and with a forced happy tone in his voice.

"What are you doing here?", Chris asked and he didn't sound happy at all. Finn didn't say anything. Piers simply held up his cigarette. There was no point in denying.

"I see. Got one more? It's not even noon and I feel like strangling someone." Finn offered him his pack of cigarettes. "For the record: This never happened.", Chris said as he lit up his cigarette. Piers noticed a slight slur in his voice and now that he was able to look at him a little closer he could see the weariness in his eyes. He had a hangover. That was one thing he was certain about.

Awkward silence ensued. It wasn't the presence of their Captain that made them feel uncomfortable, but the sheer fact that, right now, he was clearly in no condition to be at the HQ. After a couple seconds Finn dared to light another cigarette for himself. He had probably decided that it was alright as long as the Captain was there with them. "You two look like you had an equally disappointing Monday.", Chris said to break the silence.

"Lieutenant Nivans got his heart broken. So, I'm doing what any good team mate would do.", Finn said before Piers could even think of an answer. Maybe he should have just made something up instead of telling Finn about his state of mind.

"Can you imagine, Captain? Who could say no to that face?", with his free hand, Finn attempted to touch Piers' cheeks. But he dodged away from him.

"Don't touch me, man.", Piers replied annoyed. Chris Redfield was right about the last person he wanted to be counseled by.

"It was just a luckless effort to smitten a girl that's way out of my league.", Piers explained "That's all." But Chris didn't even seem to listen. He was just staring into space.

He then changed the subject without acknowledging what Piers had said.

"I just tried to call my sister at TerraSave. There's something I need to...I...whatever. It doesn't matter. Her boss told me she never arrived and she is not picking up her phone.", Chris explained…and the emptiness in Piers' chest made way for a different feeling. It was the uneasiness he expected to feel in the first place.

"It's probably nothing, but I just wanna check if everything is alright.", Chris continued.

"I can do that.", Piers said without a second thought. Chris raised his eye brows.

"I mean...," Piers began his sentence, not really sure where to go with it "No offense, Captain, but you don't look like you should participate in traffic right now.", he felt a nudge from Finn, but he was just saying the truth.

"That bad, huh?", Chris asked and took a drag from his cigarette. Piers nodded.

"Yeah, whatever. I appreciate your help. I'll send you her address."

* * *

The events of the last day made it hard for her to fall asleep, every time it felt like she was finally dozing off, she was wide awake again the next second. Starting anew to roll around in her bed sheets. It was one of those nights that felt like she couldn't catch one whole minute of sleep. Her thoughts jumped back and forth between her talk with Jill and the meeting with Piers. Both made her feel equally sick.

When she opened her eyes for the next time, her bedroom was already lit by the winter sun's light. Around this time of the year, the sun wasn't up until after she left her house…usually. It took her a couple seconds to realize what was going on, and then she jumped right out of her bed and checked her alarm clock. At this exact moment she was already one hour and 22 minutes late to work. She put her unkempt hair in a messy bun and skipped her habitual morning routine. A quick cold shower made up for the coffee she missed and the clothes that were lying on top in her laundry basket had to suffice for the day.

It was only when she went for the door and took a look on her phone after she took it from her nightstand that she noticed two unanswered calls from her boss and five from Chris.

 _It is one thing you didn't set your alarm, but how did you miss those?_

While checking her display and contemplating who to call back first, Chris took the decision away from her. He was calling her again.

"What is it?", she answered in a rushed voice while she tried to balance the phone in her hands and put on her jacket at the same time.

"Where are you? Are you alright?", he sounded hoarse.

"Uhm, yeah…I'm home. I overslept.", she tucked her phone between her ear and shoulder as she tried to put on her boots.

"I was getting a little worried when I couldn't reach you and no one at TerraSave could tell me where you are.", Chris explained. This wasn't new to Claire and a mannerism Chris just couldn't get rid of. Ever since Claire was abducted and taken to this godforsaken island somewhere in the southern hemisphere, he was a paranoid when it came to her.

She concluded that he wouldn't have noticed her absence if he hadn't tried to call her in the first place, so she was wondering about the urgency of Chris' call.

"What can I help you with, Chris?", she asked and apparently he was taken aback by her straightforwardness. She could hear him breath on the other side of the line, struggling with what to say next.

"Uhm…do you think you can come by the HQ later today? I think I need your help.", his voice was almost a whisper. It wasn't the kind of whisper one would use to keep other people from hearing his words; it was like he didn't even want to hear them himself. That's how Claire new this meeting had not much to do with work.

"Jill?", she just wanted to know if her hunch was right.

"Mh.", that was his way of saying 'yes'.

"I'm on my way. I'm already two hours late for work anyways. This won't matter.", she said as she stepped outside her door. She was blinded by the sun reflecting on the freshly fallen snow and the cold wind made her skin crawl.

"Thank you, Claire. One more thing…I might have sent Piers to check in on you.", and suddenly the world wasn't as cold anymore.

"You did WHAT?", she didn't have enough time to get mad at him at this point. Piers was already standing on the other side of the road leaning against his car.

"Old habits die hard, sorry.", he hung up.

She wasn't sure what upset her more - Her overly protective brother or Piers standing in front of her house barely twelve hours after she told him to get out of her life.

"What part of l 'leave me the fuck alone' didn't you understand?", she asked on her way over to him. Keeping up the tone she used when she left the café last night.

"I'm just following orders.", he said with a shrug. "I was told to check in on you. You seem alright, so my job here is done.", he said and opened the driver's door to get back into the car.

"Wait.", she said softer than before…she didn't know why, she just knew she didn't want him to go just yet.

 _Stupid Claire, you know why._

He turned back around and she was convinced that she could see a smile in the corner of his lips.

"Can you give me a ride? I need to talk to my brother.", her cheeks started to glow.

 _Good safe_

"Get in.", the slight tone of disappointment in his voice told Claire that he was hoping for something else.

Inside, the car was still fairly warm, which meant that he couldn't have gotten here a long time ago. The first few minutes of the drive were mainly awkward silence paired with cheesy Christmas music that was playing on every radio station. It reminded her of two nights ago with Piers and pizza and wine and it made her wonder if he had similar associations. She wanted to say something to make this whole drive a little less awkward, but didn't know where to start. Especially since it was her who the awkwardness by her behavior last night…Small talk with a guy she dumped because she was afraid of her feelings for him wasn't one of her strengths…obviously.

Her phone buzzed again, this time it was Neil. After Chris' call and Piers standing in front of her house, she forgot to get back to him.

"Oh, shit…Hello?", she said in an apologetic voice as she answered her phone.

"Claire, where are you?", he sounded neither upset nor worried. He started the call like a casual conversation.

"I'm sorry, I forgot to set my alarm last night. I…have some things on my mind right now.", she knew that Piers was listening and she was certain that he was aware that he was at least one of those things on her mind. Neil let out a soft chuckle.

"That's fine. When are you gonna be here?"

"Something important just came up…and I was wondering if I could get the day off. I know it's pretty spontaneous, but there are some things I need to handle right now. ", Chris was her top priority right now. Even if she didn't know what exactly he needed her for, she wanted to be there for him.

"I could really need you here today. Things are pretty wild these days, especially concerning the BSAA Edonia mission."

"I know…I know. And I'm sorry. I'll make it up to you, I promise.", she didn't want to beg, but there was no way in hell that she'd go to work today.

"Just don't miss the Christmas party next week."

"Thank you, Neil. I won't. Bye.", she hung up, let out a deep sight and leaned back in her chair. She was glad that he didn't ask any questions. One thing less to worry about.

"Rough night?", Piers asked and took a sip from his disposable coffee mug.

"Rough morning.", as she looked over to him, she wondered if she could get one of these coffees before she'd meet with Chris.

"Same here. But at least I made it to work in time.", he smiled.

 _This smile is gonna be the death of me_ _…_

"Just rub it in, I deserve it.", it was hard for her to stay mad at him, but being mad made it easier to keep her distance.

"This is no business work related trip to the BSAA, I assume?", Piers asked, probably referring to her phone call with Neil. And now that he mentioned it, she probably could have made something up about meeting with her brother in preparation for Edonia.

"Sometimes your work life and your private life get mixed up. Especially when your brother is the Captain of a Special Operations Unit at the BSAA. That's where the fun begins.", she was aware of the ambiguity of her words.

"Especially when your Captain's sister makes it hard to focus on work.", his words were followed by silence.

"Sorry, I didn't want to bring this up again. I understood you loud and clear at the café.", for a split second he looked over to her as if he knew that he wouldn't get a reply from her…as if he tried to read in her face what was going on in her head, because he was sure that she wouldn't say it out loud. And if he was truly capable of doing this, he would have seen a mixture of guilt, regret, longing and…hope.

She kept quiet. Even if she wanted to tell him that she was feeling the same. That he was constantly in her thoughts since Friday night, that she was happy to see him again…she couldn't take back what she said before. She struggled to stay away from him… she could tell herself a hundred she was over it. She wasn't. And now it was hard for her not to let him know.

When they finally arrived she simply thanked him with a smile. The one she got in return made her heart race again.

* * *

She could hear familiar voices when she exited the elevator; some people were standing in the hallway right in front of Chris' office. She pushed them to the side to see what was going on, Piers following right behind her.

"Are you fucking kidding me, Redfield?", she heard Jill screaming from inside of the room. The door was half open.

"What do you **want** from me?", Chris yelled back.

"How can you do this? Just look at you. Don't you know that I can tell you got drunk last night?"

"That's none of your business.", he brushed it off. Now his hoarseness made sense.

"You are in no condition to go on a mission, much less leading one.", Jill said and the door opened up just a little more, but she didn't leave the room yet.

"What do you know, Jill? You haven't seen the real world since Africa.", he replied disparagingly.

"What do I know?! I've been there! I've been there **with you**. Raccoon, Russia, Africa. You name it. Do you think I'm blind? I know what kind of **shit** you are getting yourself into.", Jill argued and she still wasn't done.

"Remember when we promised each other not to do mission like that anymore? Running away is typical for you. Risking your life and breaking promises. The old Chris wouldn't have done this.", when Jill was done, there was silence.

"This has nothing to do with running away.", Chris said after a while that seemed like an eternity.

"I'm just going on with my life in a way it would look like without you anyways.", the coldness in his voice made Claire shudder.

"Isn't that what you want?", Chris asked.

"What I want?!", her question was followed by a sarcastic laugh.

"You don't seem to understand what I want and you never got yourself through to ask me. Is this all my fault? Poor traumatized Jill. No one can decide whether to help her or not…but instead you just assume things and run away when things get heavy."

"I can't help you. And that's indeed your fault, not mine. Don't forget that it was you who turned your back on me. I didn't make you this distant cold-hearted **bitch** that you are today.", Claire covered her mouth at those words, she could feel how Piers softly laid his hand on the small of her back. His touch was soothing, but didn't make the situation any better.

"How convenient for you that this bitch saved your goddamn life and everything that happened afterwards made her this cold-hearted and distant. You're very welcome. Go to hell, Redfield.", she left and started walking towards the elevator Claire just arrived from. Their eyes met for a second, but Jill just kept on walking right past her.

"I'll see you there.", he yelled after her, then looked around and noticed all the people starring at them.

"What are you looking at? Get back to work."

Claire was shaking and she could only assume how Jill was feeling right now. She wanted to go after her, but she also needed to see her brother. She turned to Piers.

"Make sure she doesn't do anything stupid. _Please_.", she put so much emphasis in this last word that it almost sounded like a beg. Piers looked distressed and his face just seemed to ask one question. 'How?' but he nodded and followed Jill down the hallway. Claire entered her brother's office.

"Chris, what in God's name did just happen?", his face was red and his eyes were glistening as if he was close to cry. This fight had not failed to leave a mark on him.

"What are you doing here?", Chris looked at her as if she just arrived from another planet.

"What am I-? You asked me to come and talk to you, not even half an hour ago.", Claire started to wonder if her brother was losing his mind.

"I guess you are a little bit too late, aren't you?"

"Excuse me?"

"Apparently I left a voicemail on her phone last night.", the rage hadn't left his voice yet.

"Oh no...", she knew where this was going.

"I wanted to tell her, you know? So I guess I just did it after my last shot or somewhere in between? I can't remember... She is just so goddam stubborn that it's impossible to talk to her without her freaking out. It's smarter to keep my mouth shut.", he tried to explain. Claire thought it was weird that Jill said almost the exact same thing to her about Chris.

"I know she listens to you; she used to listen to me as well, but those days are long gone and now it doesn't matter. I can't wait for that mission to start. The sooner I'm out of here, the better.", Claire wondered if he could hear how her heart broke in her chest at those words.

"You know what? Maybe Jill is right. Go to hell.", she turned on her heels.

"Claire, wait. That's not what I meant…"

"I don't care what you meant.", she said while opening the door to the hallway.  
"Learn to treat the people in your life with the right amount of respect. Then we'll talk."

"Claire…"

"Sober up. I'll deal with you tomorrow.", she said and slammed the door shut behind her. He did not follow.

In a half jog she went down the hallway to go after Piers and Jill. On her phone she had received a text from Piers that simply said "Garage". The elevator took her to the basement floor and to find what she was looking for, she just needed to follow their voices. They were arguing.

"You two should get your shit together. If you can't do it for the sake of the BSAA then do it at least for Claire.", Piers was fairly calm and reasonable while discussing with Jill.

"Why are you getting involved, Nivans? You should know your boundaries.", she, on the other hand, still sounded furious, though also at the verge of crying.

"And you should stay professional on BSAA grounds and not fight like children for the whole world to hear.", Piers replied. Before Jill could open her mouth again, her eyes met Claire's.

"He's not wrong about that, Jill.", Claire said and made a step toward her friend.

"And that makes it better how?", Jill's voice broke. It wouldn't take much more to make her burst into tears Claire wanted to get her out of this place before that would happen.

"Let me drive you home.", Claire offered.

"I can do that myself. Just leave me alone", Jill grabbed her car keys from her pocket and let them fall right to the floor. Piers picked them up before she could…and handed them over to Claire.

"We both know that is not what you want.", Claire used the remote to open Jill's car. Tired of fighting, she sighed, bowed her head and walked over to her car.

Before Claire followed her, she looked at Piers. She knew that Jill needed her right now, but she was hurting too…and being comforted by Piers sounded a lot more inviting than analyzing Chris' behavior with Jill.

"You think you can handle my brother?"

"I'm not sure if I have a choice right now.", he laughed. She liked his sense of humor even in a situation like this.

"Good luck.", she tried to reply with a hopeful smile.

"Same to you.", he nodded toward Jill's car. For a moment Claire wanted to lean in for a hug. A goodbye hug, a hug of comfort. Whatever. But she didn't. Unsure what to do or say next, she simply returned his nod and went over to the car without another word.

* * *

"I'm sorry, Claire…so sorry that you had to see that.", they had barely left the garage when Jill started to sob. Claire was actually impressed that she had managed to hold it in for so long. While Jill cried into her hands, Claire remained silent. There were no words of comfort she could think of and she knew that Jill didn't like to be wrapped in hugs and be comforted like other people did…not since she had been with Wesker. She just hoped that Jill was comfortable with her being around. After about five minutes of silent crying Jill finally found her voice again.

"Did you know?", Claire knew what she was referring to…Edonia...and Jill wouldn't like the answer. But lying wasn't an option.

"Yes.", she heard Jill exhale sharply, but before she could comment Claire went on. "…but it wasn't until yesterday when Chris told me that he kept it a secret from you."

"It doesn't really matter anymore, does it?", Jill asked and looked out of the window, she seemed to fight with her tears once again.

"How did you find out?", Claire wanted to know. Chris mentioned some sort of voicemail.

Jill let out an sarcastic laugh before she answered.

"He got shit drunk with Leon and decided that 3 in the morning is a good time to call me and talk about Edonia.", so Claire's interpretation was right.

"His call didn't wake me up, I heard the message he left this morning.", she paused. "I'm gonna leave NY, Claire. I went to HQ to turn in my notice then I decided to confront Chris and you heard how that went.", Jill's voice was solid again, but now Claire felt like crying.

"You don't have to go. I'll be here for you…you can come with me to the TerraSave Christmas Party. Moira will be there too.", this was the smartest thing she could come up with.

"This has nothing to do with you. I just can't stay in this city any longer. I need some distance.", for the second time this morning Claire felt a stinging pain in her chest. It wasn't as bad as when her brother said he couldn't wait to go, but it came pretty damn close. She wondered if Jill had been planning to leave New York without saying goodbye.

"Where are you going?", Claire knew she made up her mind. Though she wanted her to stay there was nothing she could do.

"I'm gonna visit my Dad at some point.", she answered. Claire knew that Jill's father was in prison for the rest of his life. She rarely talked about him and she probably wouldn't change that now.

"Maybe I'll go and see Barry and Becca. I don't know yet. I guess I can do whatever I want...I don't have a job anymore."

"You're leaving today?", Claire knew the answer, but she wanted to ask anyways. For the sake of the conversation.

"I need to pick up some stuff at home, then I'll hit the road."

"And you want to go like this. Without sorting things out with Chris?"

"Things are sorted out. I don't think there's anything else left to say."

Claire knew a discussion was to no avail. Unless her brother would turn up at Jill's doorstep and apologize on his knees to beg for her forgiveness, they'd be parting ways like that. And it was highly unlikely that this would happen.

"What did his voicemail say?", Claire asked and dreaded the answer.

"Some parts were hard to understand, but it was pretty much three minutes of. 'I'm going to Edonia and you can't stop me. I didn't tell you because I know you'd snap.' Oh, and according to his jabbering, it was Leon who convinced him to call me."

Those two drinking together never ended well.

"I'm pretty sure he didn't tell him to call you in the middle of the night, he probably just suggested that it's better to hear it from him than from anyone else.", Leon and her thought alike in a lot of matters. So this wasn't any different.

"Well, I heard it from him and he was right. I fucking snapped. I am furious and hurt and disappointed and devastated, but I'm glad that I know now.", she sighed.

"You wanna know why I was at HQ this morning? Chris called me to come see him and talk about you. But you were a little faster than me. I wish I would have been there sooner to prevent what happened.", Claire wondered if this scene would have played out any differently if she had been there from the start.

"It had to happen eventually. There wouldn't have been anything you could do. This is your brother's fault…and mine.", Jill concluded.

"I agree with you in a lot of things and I share your opinion on these missions being too dangerous…", Claire stopped. She needed to think about her next words thoroughly.

"But...?", Jill couldn't hide some anticipation in her voice. And it wasn't the good kind of anticipation.

"But these missions are one of the few things that make him feel alive. He chose this way of living. You both did.", Claire wasn't sure if this was the right moment to talk about this subject. But Jill would leave today and she needed it off her chest.

"This was a long time ago. Things are different now."

"Are they? To me it seems all the same. Chris changed, sure. He drinks more, but he always liked to drink. He isn't as carefree as he used to be in his early twenties but this applies to all of us.", Claire started to explain. She didn't want to diminish the awful things her brother said to Jill, she just wanted to help her understand.

"I think he _is_ fit to lead this mission, Jill.", Claire finally said. Jill took some time to answer.

"You saw him, right? He's their Captain. Their lives depend on him and he shows up hungover to work.", Jill argued.

"I know. And I agree that this is highly unprofessional, but I've seen him a lot worse and he always managed to see through his operations."

"When? I can't remember ever seeing him worse than this.", Claire could hear that Jill was close to tears once again.

"You couldn't. You were missing, presumed dead.", Claire had pushed these dark times away from her. She had tried to be strong for Chris...but not only had he lost his longtime partner, she had lost her closest friend.

"Oh.", was all Jill managed to say.

"When he left for Africa, I was sure I wouldn't see him again. It sounded like a suicide mission to me. But he came back and he had found you. He just couldn't handle the way Wesker changed you. You know that he always blamed himself for what happened to you.", Claire had never talked about this with Jill, but when she had to stay at the hospital for a couple weeks after their return from Kijuju, Chris went through hell once again. He couldn't bear to see in this state. More than once Claire heard him say 'It should have been me' when he came back from a visit. This was the time their relationship got their first cracks. He couldn't get himself through to see her as much as she had needed him to. He avoided her so he wouldn't have to face what Jill had become in her absence. After she rejoined the BSAA, she was the walking and talking proof of his failure at the Spencer Estate.

"I would jump out of this window a hundred times more if that would save his life.", Jill said barely audible.

"You should tell him, not me."

No reply. Jill didn't say another word for the rest of the ride.

* * *

Claire was sitting on Jill's couch and rested her eyes while Jill herself was busy cramming together whatever she would need for her road trip. When the phone rang, Chris was the first person that came to her mind. But she was wrong.

"Piers…everything okay?", she asked and without even hearing his voice, her heart started to beat faster. Weirdly enough, it felt good after a morning of heartache.

"I'm calling to ask you the same.", he replied. How cute that he cared like this while he probably had his hands full at the BSAA right now.

"I'm at Jill's. She's packing.", saying it out loud sucked even more than just thinking about it.

"I heard she quit. So she's ditching NY?"

"Seems like it."

"Are you alright?", it wasn't just an empty phrase. She was convinced that he actually cared how she was feeling, so she decided not to lie about it.

"No, not really. Rough morning indeed.", she admitted.

"You can say that again. Things around here haven't really calmed down yet either.", Claire wondered if he wasn't only calling to ask her how she was feeling, but also to share some of his baggage with her.

"What happened after we left?"

"I sent him home, what else could I do? I offered to take his command for the rest of the day. That's not something I can't handle, but the scene they caused here left a lot of people losing their heads about Edonia. I'm not sure if we get to fix this before we're actually leaving.", he couldn't hide his frustration in these words.

"If half of the stories Chris told me about you are true, you won't have any problems getting your men back on track.", Claire encouraged him and when she looked up, she noticed that Jill had stepped back into the living room.

"Thank you, Claire. Gotta go back to work. Call me if you need anything.", he hung up before she could say goodbye. This call left a pleasant feeling in her belly, a feeling she had a couple times in the past days. It made her smile for the fraction of a second.

"You like him.", Jill commented. Claire didn't know how much she heard of the conversation, but apparently it was enough to know who she was talking to.

"Is it that obvious?", she asked and rolled her eyes. The more she tried not to like him, the harder it got. Jill smiled empathetically.

"We never got to talk about yesterday. From your text it sounded like you broke things off with him.", Jill sat down next to her.

"I did. But he was standing in front of my house this morning, because Chris told him to check on me, because I overslept and he couldn't reach me.", Claire explained.

"Sounds like him."

Claire told Jill the story about her meeting with Piers at the café and how she was unable to sleep with everything that was going on in her mind.

"This is my fault and I shouldn't have gotten involved. The problems Chris and I have can't be have transferred on you, I was too occupied with my own thoughts to see it.", she took a deep breath before she continued. "Piers is a good kid. It takes some balls to talk to his superior the way he did today. I can tell that he cares about you.", Jill finished.

"It has been a while since I felt something like that for anyone.", Claire admitted. After Jill's words from before she'd expected her to react with a smile, with some words of assurance. Something like 'Forget what I said yesterday. Go for it!' But nothing. She just nodded. Apparently, she still couldn't bring herself through to encourage Claire's connection to Piers.

"You ready to go?", Claire asked after an eternity without an answer. There was nothing else to discuss.

"I think so."

* * *

Jill insisted on driving Claire home and since her mood seemed to be somewhat stable, Claire didn't object. The drive to Claire's place was a lot quieter than before. Every word that came to Claire's mind had either something to do with convincing Jill to stay in NY or convincing her to talk to Chris. Both wouldn't happen.

When it was time to say goodbye, it hurt Claire even more than she would have expected. While she secretly wiped some tears away from the corner of her eyes, she literally had to bite her tongue to avoid asking Jill when she would return to this city. She feared the answer, so she preferred rather not to know.

"Take care of yourself.", Claire tried to keep a stable voice.

"Same goes for you, Redfield.", Jill leaned for a hug which Claire returned without hesitation.

"What shall I do without my Valentine?", Claire asked in a fake dramatic voice to hide her sadness.

"I think you'll be able to find a replacement.", she had a smile on her face. And Claire understood. Those were the words of assurance she had needed earlier.

"I'll let you know.", Claire replied as they parted their hug.

Even after Jill's car had long disappeared from Claire's field of vision, she kept standing in her drive way, staring off in the distance. Minutes and people passed by.

 _What now?_

She could feel how her fingertips turned numb from the coldness, but she couldn't get herself to move.

Jill's words lingered in her mind. This wasn't about finding a replacement for her, but creating a little space in her heart for someone new.

Piers...his name echoed in her thoughts. Along with Jill, Chris, Sherry and Rebecca, was one of the few people in this world she could truly be herself around. That was something she couldn't throw away so easily...something she just shouldn't throw away. Maybe it wasn't too late yet.

As if remote-controlled, she walked inside her house. The new determination helped her to come to the realization that just because her brother and Jill were miserable, she didn't have to be.

And after a long and warm shower, Claire new what she had to do.


End file.
